Four Man Squads
by 109th Star
Summary: What if in the Naruto universe, the powers that be decided that Four Man Teams were to be the norm instead of Three Man Teams, how would things change? Rating upped from T to M for language also lemons may be appearing in later chapters
1. Chapter 1 This Year's New Squads

Four Man Squads

Chapter 1 - This Year's New Squads

Naruto Uzumaki smiled as he took his seat in the classroom while awaiting the announcements of the teams and instructors for the new genins. Even though that bastard Mizuki had betrayed him, Naruto had managed to pass anyway by saving Iruka-sensei with his surprising mastery of the Shadow Clone Jutsu. The past few days have been the best in his life, knowing that he was one step closer on his road to his dream of Hokage and that he finally had someone who acknowledged him. The only way his day could get any worse was if he got teamed up with that stuck up Uchiha kid.

Naruto was knocked out of his reverie, by the sound of a fight between two kunoichi started to break out. Of course, it was Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka fighting over who would get the seat next to that damned Uchiha. Man, that guy irked Naruto so much that Naruto could barely stand it. What was so special about Sasuke Uchiha anyway?

As the kunoichi bickered amongst themselves, Naruto climbed up on the desk in front of Sasuke, and stared him dead in the eyes. Sasuke locked eyes with him, not willing to back down to the "dead last". Naruto was getting even angrier and Uchiha when he felt a slight nudge against his butt. There was nothing Naruto could do to stop it, he was already precariously perched on the desk as it was and the little bump knocked him straight into Sasuke. Naruto closed his eyes and prepared himself for the eventual pain of the headbutt that was coming, but instead felt something soft touch his lips. As he opened his eyes all he saw was the eyes and nose of Sasuke staring back at him. It took Naruto a second to realize what was going on… HE WAS KISSING SASUKE UCHIHA!!!! That annoying kid had just managed to steal Naruto's first kiss. Naruo jumped away and started trying to clean his mouth out of this horrid taste. He barely registered that the classroom was so silent that one could hear a pin drop. As he turned around, satisfied that he had gotten as much of that taste out of his mouth short of scouring his mouth with dishwashing detergent and a steel mesh sponge, he noticed that all the kunoichi in the room were staring at him with eyes of fire and hatred. Then he realized what just transpired, he had just received Sasuke Uchiha's first kiss, a prize these young kunoichi had been fighting for for the last few years. Immediately, Naruto's universe was nothing but pain.

"That's enough, everyone to their seats." Iruka-sensei called out, "I'll now be announcing the team groupings for the graduates of the Genin Exams." Iruka then shuffled around some papers and then started to read off the team assignements.

"Team 1..."

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Sakura Haruno got the seat she wanted, right next to Sasuke-kun. However, the feeling was sickened a little because she was sitting next to the baka that had stolen her beloved's first kiss, Naruto Uzumaki. She was barely paying attention to who was being assigned to which team, her eyes were filled with nothing but the glory that was Sasuke Uchiha. She just barely registered Iruka-sensei's voice as he rattled off the names for the memebers of Team 7

"Naruto Uzumaki", good Sakura thought, maybe he'll get stuck with another bunch of losers far away from her, preferably with Ino-pig.

"Sakura Haruno", WHAT!?!?! There was no way that she was just put on a team with that baka. What about Sasuke? Knowing Sakura's luck, he'd probably land on a team with Ino. Oh gods, why did it have to end up like this…

"Sasuke Uchiha", REDEMPTION! Having to put up with Naruto was going to be a pain, but at least she was on the team with Sasuke. True love wins out this time, Ino-pig.

"Hinata Hyuga", Sakura didn't care who their fourth teammate was, she was in a team with Sasuke Uchiha, nothing else mattered. She was going to get to spend more time with him than any other kunoi… wait what? Hinata Hyuga? The shy girl that most everyone just ignored, even though she was from one of the most prestigious clans in Konoha? Sakura worried for a moment, would Hinata be an obstacle in her pursuit of love with Sasuke? Sakura didn't think the Hyuga girl will be a problem, but she had to take precautions just in case…

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Hinata was glad, she was in a team with Naruto-kun. At least she'll be able to still admire him while working with him. A little part of her worried that she might end up dragging him down, but she was too happy about her pairing to worry about that too much. As she thought about how happy she will be spending more time with Naruto, she looked down to see that Naruto was staring up at her. What was he thinking? She blushed and turned away when she realized that she was staring back. She just barely caught the assignments of the next team.

"Team 8 will consist of Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, Shiroi Wangetsu, Kaen Kanadzuchi" Hinata wasn't familiar with most of those students. Shino was really quiet, a lot like her really, and you couldn't miss Kiba who always had his white-furred dog Akamaru with him. Shiroi had a messy frump of white hair, but other than that he looked to be completely average, but he was better with melee weapons than anyone else in the class, including the class prodigy Sasuke Uchiha. Kaen on the other hand was anything but average for a kunoichi, she had hair that looked like flame, it stuck straight up and when she walked it moved back and forth like a fire on the top of her head. Also, Kaen was taller than anyone in the class, at least by a head, and skin of a fine bronze color. If Hinata didn't know any better, she would have sworn that Kaen was forged from the blaze of a blacksmith's forge.

But Hinata couldn't hold her focus for long. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the fact that she was in a team with Naruto, her personal idol. She began to think about what kind of mission they might be doing together when she realized that she missed the assignments for Team 9 and Iruka-sensei was already calling out Team-10

"Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka, Tsuneni Tadashii. That's all of the teams, everyone please remain seated while you Jonin Instructors come in to introduce themselves and take charge of you. Congratulations, you have all graduated from the Konoha Ninja Academy." Iruka-sensei finished, it looked like he was smiling at Naruto when he said the last part, but Hinata couldn't be sure. After Iruka left the classroom, a few other people who must be the jonins who were to take charge of the genin teams. Soon after all the other jonins had taken off with their genins. Hinata, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were the last team left.

They waited for what seemed like an hour. Naruto rigged a board eraser trap in the door to the classroom, Hinata stifled a giggle, that was her Naruto for you. Not too long after the door slid open and the eraser struck the floor.

"He he, which one of you rascals set that one up?" a man's voice said behind the door. As he walked in he continued talking, "Reminds me of something I would do back in my days at the academy."

The man that was apparently their jonin instructor was a moderately tall man with black spiky hair, and as Hinata looked at him, she swore he had a passing resemblance to Naruto. He wore a pretty basic black combat suit, the only thing that seemed out of place was that he wore a pair of orange goggles over his Leaf headband.

"Hello Team 7," the man announced, "I'm your jonin instructor, Obito Uchiha."

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Obito took his new team to the park that looked out onto the massive Hokage Monument. It was a nice day, now that he thought about it. Summer was just starting in Konoha, early enough still that the days weren't blisteringly hot, and late enough that you could stay out at night and not have to worry about catching the chills. The perfect time of the year. Obito looked down at his team, the only true survivor of the massacre that killed their family, an obviously shy heir to the most prominent clan in Konoha, a pink haired kunoichi that looked at his younger cousin with the looks of a girl without wits, and a blonde kid in a outrageous orange jumpsuit who just so happened to be the host of the Kyubi. Obito thought himself lucky, he might possibly have the most powerful team out of this year's genin. Obito leaned against a light pole while the fresh genin sat in a semi-circle in the grass. This was Obito's favorite spot in the entire village for various reasons, but that was a memory for another day.

"Well, I told you my name. Let's go around the group here. Tell me your name, your dreams, likes, and dislikes." Obito stated, "let's start with you Sasuke-kun" Obito laughed a little inwardly as Sasuke stiffened up at the way Obito addressed him. Sasuke hated it when Obito called him that.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. My mission is to resurrect my clan and to kill a certain person." Sasuke said simply. Obito should've guessed. Every since that day Sasuke obsessed about gaining the strength to kill his older brother Itachi, the man who massacred their collective family years ago. While Obito could sympathize with the younger Uchiha, part of him wanted revenge on Itachi for what he did, but vengeance is an empty pursuit. If one thing happened while he was the head of Team 7, Obito would make sure that Sasuke realized there was more to his life than getting revenge on Itachi. He sighed as it didn't seem Sasuke was going to say any more.

"Next is you." Obito said as he pointed to the kid in the orange jumpsuit.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I like ramen. I dislike the 3 minutes it takes for cup ramen to cook. My hobbies are pranks, and my dream is to one day become the Hokage of Konoha and have all the people of the village acknowledge my existence." the kid said as he fiddled with his headband. Obito just looked at the kid. He knew from reports that the kid was a troublemaker and pulled all sorts of pranks, just like Obito himself used to in his academy days. His dream to be Hokage though, that was interesting for a kid that's been an outcast in the village his entire life, because of the fact that the Kyubi that nearly destroyed the village was sealed in his body, he was going to be an interesting kid to watch grow up.

"Okay," he looked over at the pink-haired girl, "How about you?"

"My name is Sakura Haruno. I like Sasuke-kun." Sasuke stiffened up a little again, Obito had to silence a chuckle as the kunoichi continued, "I dislike Naruto." Obito watched Naruto slumped his shoulders, apparently Naruto like Sakura, but his feelings weren't returned in any way. Obito heard that the children of the village inherited their parent's hatred of the young boy, but this was sad. Sakura then degenerated into mess of giggles as she tried to describe her dreams or hobbies. They probably were something regarding Sasuke.

"That's good, Sakura." Obito cut her off prematurely, positive she wasn't going to contribute much more. "That leaves you for last," he said as he settled his eyes on the young Hyuga heiress.

"M-m-my name is Hinata Hyuga. Um…my likes are…um…" Obito noticed as she constantly shifted her vision from him to Naruto multiple times as she tried to stutter through what she wanted to say. While she couldn't say it, Obito knew what, or more correctly who, it was she liked, Naruto Uzumaki.

"It's fine if you don't feel like you can share Hinata, please continue." Obito said reassuringly.

"Okay. Um…I dislike people who look down at others. M-my dream is to b-be as strong as um…" HInata started splitting her attention from Obito and Naruto again, "…the person I look up to." she finally managed to say. Then she looked down at the ground, "I don't have any hobbies."

"Alright, I guess it's my turn then." Obito said. "As I told you back at the academy, my name is Obito Uchiha. I like my wife, Rin. I dislike people who live life to much by the rules and can't think for themselves. My dream is to help you all reach Jonin, or at least it's my dream now. Lastly, my hobbies include helping those in need, and playing the occasional prank." he finished that last sentence with a sly wink to Naruto.

"Well now that introductions are out of the way, let me congratulate each of you on graduating. However, I'm also going to have to be the bearer of bad news." Obito said somberly.

"What sort of bad news?" Sakura Haruno asked earnestly.

"Well, there's one more test you all have to go through before I take you as my team. You see, even though 40 of you passed this year, only three teams, or 12 of you, are going to get taken as active genin with Jonin instructors. While failure at this stage doesn't totally kill your chances of becoming a ninja, or progress will be greatly reduced as you'll be introduced into a more second-string program where you fill in when the village need you." Obito explained. As he finished, Naruto jumped up to his feet pointing at him.

"That's bullshit! We've already passed the Genin Exams, why do we have to take another test?" he shouted. Obito just sighed.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but it's not my call. This is the way things are done. I have to give you guys a thorough workout and then if I think you guys can take the stresses of ninja work, I hand in my recommendation to the Hokage, then he decides which teams go to active duty, and which ones are put on the proverbial backburner." Obito explained. "However, if you guys work together as a team I'm sure you'll pull through. Anyway, meet me at training ground 19, you guys know the one right?" all the genin nodded in response, "Good meet me there at 6 AM sharp, and you also might want to skip breakfast, it's going to be pretty rough, and you might end up throwing up. Other than that, you have the rest of the day to yourselves"

Obito watched as his genin team departed. He wondered if any of them got the hint that they'll have to work as a team, even though he was going to be throwing them a pretty nasty curveball with the bell test he inherited from the 4th Hokage.

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Naruto was walking along the streets of Konoha, not really going anywhere in particular. He was just trying to burn some time until dinner, Iruka-sensei was supposed to be treating him to ramen at Ichiraku tonight. As he turned a corner, he heard a voice call out from where he was walking from.

"Please wait, Naruto." it was Hinata, running to catch up to him. He stopped and waited for her to catch up.

"Hello, Hinata. What's up?" Naruto asked as they strolled down the street together.

"Um… I-I just wanted to know what you thought of Obito-sensei." Hinata asked him, refusing to make eye contact.

"Well, he seemed like a good guy, I guess." Naruto said earnestly, then he got a gleam of mischief in his eye. "I wonder if he actually plays pranks on people. We might have to get together and see what kinds of mayhem we can make." Naruto said with a large grin on his face. Maybe something involving the Hokage would be good, Naruto thought to himself. He almost forgot that Hinata was still with him. "What do you think of him Hinata?"

Hinata stumbled a little while blushing, before she composed herself enough to come up with a response, "W-well, um… I think he's a kind person. I like people like him. People who are kind and think of other people before themselves." She said earnestly.

Naruto thought about it for a bit while they walked. Kind to others, huh. Now that he thought about, she was right Obito did strike Naruto as a rather kind person. Then he thought of a question. "Do you think I'm a nice person Hinata?"

Hinata all but stopped as Naruto finished his question. Naruto took a few more steps before he realized that he was leaving her behind. He turned around to see Hinata setting there pressing her forefingers together and her face was as red as a beet. She was working her mouth, but no words were coming out. Finally she started talking, but she didn't make a lot of sense, all he could make out was a few stuttered Is and thinks before she finally said, "I'm sorry." Hinata then ran back the way they came.

Naruto was left to think to himself. The thoughts weren't happy ones. Why did Hinata run away? Did she not think he was a good person? Did she run to spare him hearing what she really thought of him? Maybe all those pranks tarnished his reputation a little more than thought, or was comfortable with. Suddenly, he wasn't looking as forward to dinner with Iruka-sensei. However, ramen is ramen, and Naruto would be damned if he would skip out on a free dinner.

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Hinata waited until she was almost back to the Hyuga compound until she slowed down. What was wrong with her, running away from Naruto like that. He probably thought she was awful for just leaving him there. Worse, he probably thought she didn't think he was a nice person, and just couldn't say it to his face. Here she was getting ready to be on a team with Naruto, and she could barely say more than a few sentences to him before she starts stumbling over her words and just acting like an idiot in general.

As she walked up to the entrance of the Hyuga part of Konoha, she was still chiding herself for acting the way she had, and vowed to make it up to Naruto tomorrow, no matter what. First, however, she had to get her gear ready for the morning. The night held nothing but nightmares for her though. Horrid dreams where all she could see was Naruto's back and no matter how much she yelled or what she tried to do to get his attention, he just ran on and left her behind, alone.

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Sakura walked up to the training ground she was supposed to meet Sasuke-kun, Obito-sensei, and the rest of her team at. It was a nice little area as she looked around. It was a small clearing flanked on one side by the river that ran through Konoha, and a forest on the other. The most prominent feature of the area though where the 3 stone stumps in the middle of the training ground. Sakura assumed they were placed there as dummies for target practice and other sorts of training. She also noticed that she wasn't the first one there, Sasuke was leaning up against one of the stones.

"Hi, Sasuke-kun." she yelled as she ran up to meet him, "Pretty nice weather today, isn't it? What kind of exercise do you think Obito-sensei will put us through."

"I don't know," Sasuke stated simply, "Obito and I aren't really close."

"Oh…" Sakura said as she heard someone yell out behind her.

"Hello, Sakura-san!" Naruto was running out into the clearing waving at her with one of his stupid grins on his face. Damn that Naruto, couldn't he see she was trying to get some alone time with her beloved? Geez, he is so annoying.

"What do you want, Naruto?" Sakura glared at Naruto with eyes of pure hatred.

Naruto stopped dead in his tracks, and just stared at her before finally saying, "Um, nice weather were having today, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess." Sakura said as she turned back to face Sasuke. She barely heard the footsteps of another person entering the clearing. She turned her head again to see Hinata step out into the open. She was very pointedly not making eye contact with Naruto, and he was doing the same. Did something happen between those two yesterday?

"Well, it looks like everyone is here, where is Obito-sensei?" Sakura asked the group in general as she looked at the sun. She could tell by it's position and the time of year that it should be right at 6:00 AM. "He's late for his own test."

The four of them just stood around for what seemed like hours. The odd air around Naruto and Hinata continued and they wouldn't speak to each other. Sakura tried talking to Sasuke, while Naruto was trying to talk to her, and all that ended up happening was Sasuke ignored her, while she ignored Naruto. The day was starting to get hotter as the morning wore on, even most of the forest animals seemed to be taking it easy today. It was an unusually hot day after the perfect day that was yesterday. Finally, Sakura heard a twig snap and turned her head along with everyone else to see there sensei casually strolling into the clearing.

She started to shout at their sensei, and surprisingly found herself shouting the same thing at the exact same time as Naruto did, "WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?"

"I'm sorry, I was on my way and found out my landlord's mother bought some new furniture and some appliances, and needed help moving in. Took a little longer than I had planned." Obito said with a sheepish grin on his face.

"Likely story." Sakura heard Naruto mumble, and for once she had to agree with the idiot.

"Well, let's see, I guess I should start explaining what kind of exam you four are going to have. The test is simple, I have three bells," Sakura watched as he pulled three small bells from his equipment pouch, and bounced them in the air with a jingle, "The premise is simple, you have to get a bell or you fail. If you fail to get a bell before noon, I'll tie you to one of those stumps over there and you get to watch me and whoever of your teammates pass eat lunch while you go hungry. After that, we'll see where we go from there."

"Um… sensei" Sakura heard Hinata say, "If you only have three bells, not all of us can pass." Sakura turned her attention back to her new instructor.

"That is correct Hinata. No matter what happens here, at least one person will fail." Obito replied simply.

"But that's no fair." Sakura replied.

Obito simply shrugged, "No one ever said life was fair." He then pulled out an egg timer. "It's currently 8:22, you have until Noon sharp before the exam is over, we start now."

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Obito watched as 3 out of his four pupils scattered to take up hiding spots and wait for a chance to snatch a bell. The only one who didn't move was Naruto. He stood there with a grin on his face then pointed at Obito, then he issued a two word challenge, "Fight me!"

Obito sighed, maybe this group was going to be a little rougher to teach than he originally thought. "Are you saying you think you can win a one on one fight against me, Naruto?" Obito asked, with a grin to his lips.

"I'm the future Hokage, and I'll thump you and take those bells for my team myself, I can't fail here." Naruto said with all confidence, then he charged at Obito.

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Naruto eyes widened in shock as Obito was there one moment, and then simply wasn't. Before Naruto could make any sense out of the situation he felt something grab him by the ankles and throw him high into the air. He landed in the river.

"Damn it,: Naruto thought to himself, "he's fast I won't be able to beat him one on one. I guess that leaves me with one choice."

"Shadow Clone Jutsu" Naruto said as about 10 copies of himself popped out of thin…er, water.

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Hinata had managed to hide herself in the forest, and had activated her Byakugan, when Naruto started his charge of their sensei. Hinata could barely keep up with sensei's speed as he spun behind Naruto grabbed him by the ankles and chucked him into the river.

"How am I going to be able to get one of those bells, if Naruto-kun can't even do it." Hinata thought to herself. She was startled as a mass of people launched themselves out of the water. I took her a second, but she realized they were all Naruto, and they weren't just normal clones, they each had their own chakra system, they were real not the illusions they were taught at the academy.

Hinata watched in amazement as the clones resumed their attack on Obito-sensei. However, what amazed her more than Naruto's advanced ninjutsu was Obito's speed and power. The clones never laid a hand on Obito, not even so much as a passing glance, while he managed to land serious blows on each one of the clones, dispelling each one into a puff of smoke. Soon after the attack started, there was only one Naruto left.

"Damn it." Naruto shouted, "Shadow Clone Jutsu" Hinata watched as 30 more clone popped into place, each one with seemingly the same amount of chakra as the original Naruto. How much chakra did he have to use a technique like that? Before she could think about her own question, she figured out her plan of attack, if Naruto kept throwing clones at Obito, then Hinata should be able to slip in and snatch a bell. However, before she could enact her plan she saw a streak of blue. It was Sasuke, apparently he had the same idea that she had.

Sasuke dashed into the melee and attempted to snatch one of the bells attached to Obito's waist. However, Naruto's clones weren't expecting the addition of Sasuke to the battle and one bowled Sasuke over after he was hit by Obito. Obito, smiled as he made a few hand signs.

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu" Obito said as he brought his hands to his mouth and then proceeded to blow fire across all the clones of Naruto, making them all disappear as if they had never been.

"I'll give you credit for knowing a pretty advanced jutsu, Naruto. But with your level of skills you aren't going to be able to get close to my bells. The same goes for you, Sasuke-kun." Obito lectured. He seemed distracted and his back was turned to her, so Hinata decided to give it her best shot. She dashed out of the treeline as fast as she could, aiming a Jyuuken strike at her sensei's leg hoping she could disable him long enough to grab a bell. However, she had to abruptly stop as a couple of kunai flashed in front of her, and into Obito's hands. "Nice try, kiddos." Obito said as he turned to look at her and Sakura, who Hinata noticed was still hiding in the trees almost back and to the left of her.

Hinata realized that this wasn't going to work, they were getting in each other's way. Someone was going to have to bite the bullet and fail this test. She didn't know Sakura or Sasuke enough to ask that of them, and she didn't want to do anything that would endanger Naruto's dream of becoming Hokage one day. So it looked like the one to fail was going to be her.

"Everyone, we need to talk." Hinata said as they were all in earshot. "We can't do this alone, we have to work as a team." She then retreated back into the forest to hide from their sensei turned opponent.

Shortly, the other three joined her. "But," Sakura started, "one of us is guaranteed to fail, how can we work as a team when we can't trust each other not to try to grab a bell when the opportunity presents itself and save their own skin?"

"It's simple, I'll take the fail." Hinata said, "It's okay with me, I'm not that strong, and even if I don't get to eat I shouldn't drag down the team any more than usual."

"No way!" Naruto all but shouted, "I can't let you do that, we don't even know if we are all going to get to be active genins or not, what if this means you don't get to be a ninja?"

"Well…I….uh" Hinata stammered.

"Well, kiddos, I've heard enough for myself." Hinata was shocked when Obito appeared in the middle of their little powwow, "You all pass." Obito then smiled apporvingly at all of them.

"Wait… what it going on?" Naruto asked.

Instead of Obito answering, it was Sasuke who replied, "I get it, this was a test to put us into a stressful situation in which a choice that would hinder one of us would benefit the rest of the team."

Obito merely nodded, then stated, "That's only the first half of it though, the second is after one of you decides to sacrifice his or herself for the good of the team, how would the rest of you react. In the ninja world, those who disobey the rules are scum. However, those who would just abandon their friends and comrades to achieve a mission are worse than scum. You guys proved to me with this little get together of yours that you are capable of fighting not only for yourselves, but for each other, and to protect each other. Therefore, you all pass, I'll be passing my recommendation on to the Hokage, to keep Team 7 together. The passing teams should be posted in a few days, if you guys make it, we'll meet up at the same park I took you to yesterday. Well, you guys passed faster than I thought you would, only about an hour has passed, how about I go treat you all to some lunch?"

"Can we go to Ichiraku?" Naruto asked enthusiastically.

"You do really like your ramen, don't you?" Obito mused, "No, I'm going to take you to one of my favorite places and we'll celebrate."

"Hai!" Naruto and Hinata said in unison, and Team 7 gathered their things and took off back to Konoha. Hinata was relieved, they passed, that meant more time she would be able to spend with Naruto-kun.


	2. Chapter 2 Happy Days

Chapter 2

Training, D-ranked Missions, and Happy Days

Naruto woke feeling good. He was sure that Team 7 passed, hell it was barely even an hour before they passed Obito-sensei's exam. That had to be some sort of record or something. Naruto got up out of bed and fixed himself some instant ramen, it wasn't as good as the stuff from Ichiraku's, but Naruto couldn't afford to eat there every meal, even though the gods knew he wished he could. After finishing his breakfast, he took a quick shower, slapped on one of his patented orange jumpsuits, and headed to the Konoha Ninja Academy, where the results of the exams would be posted.

Naruto locked the door to his apartment, and leapt, literally, down the stairs. As he leapt the bottom flight of the stairs, he saw Sakura's trademark pink hair on the other side of the street.

"Hello! Sakura-chan." Naruto yelled as he waved and crossed the street. Sakura turned around and looked at him with a mildly disgusted look on her face, however she did wait for him to catch up.

"What do you want Naruto?" she said in a no-nonsense tone.

"Umm… nothing really, just wanted to walk with my teammate to see if we passed." Naruto replied earnestly.

"Well… OK, that's fine I guess." Sakura said as they strolled down the street together. After a few minutes of silence, Sakura asked a question, "So do you think we passed?"

"Oh yeah, definitely." Naruto replied with his hands behind his head looking at the sky. "I mean we finished that test in like an hour. I mean, that has to be some sort of record right?"

"Yeah, you're probably right." Sakura agreed.

"Hey, isn't that Hinata?" Naruto said pointing ahead of them, to a lavender-haired girl. "Hey! Hinata-chan! Wait up!" Hinata stopped suddenly and turned around, waiting for Naruto and Sakura to catch up.

"H-hello, N-naruto, Sakura." Hinata said sheepishly as they joined her.

"How's it going Hinata?" Naruto asked. He had completely forgot the awkwardness between them a few days ago.

Hinata, however had not forgotten, "um…. I-I'm okay, I guess." She still refused to make eye contact with Naruto, and had went back to pressing her forefingers together, her staple nervous habit.

They strolled on in relative silence until they reached the Konoha Ninja Academy. The three of them saw Sasuke waiting at the front door.

"I was wondering when you guys were going to show up." Sasuke sighed, "I was getting bored of waiting."

"S-sorry, Sasuke." Hinata said as she bowed deeply.

"Geez, can't you lighten up a little Sasuke?" Naruto said with a smile, "It can't be good for your health to be a stuck up jerk all the time." Next thing Naruto knew his chin was resting quite… firmly on the ground. He was also pretty sure he was seeing the prettiest night sky ever in his life.

"Don't like that to Sasuke-kun, you knucklehead" Sakura shouted, fist still raised, at the same time Hinata whispered, "Na-naruto-kun?"

Sasuke just sighed at what he saw, "Let's just go see if we passed or not." With that, he turned and walked through the doorway. Sakura ran in after him, and Naruto scrambled to his feet, not to be left behind. That left Hinata bringing up the rear.

The room in which the final results where to be posted was full, and everybody in the room was confident, sure that they had been the ones who had passed. Team 7 took some open seats in the back of the class and oozed confidence just like everyone else in the room, well everyone except for Hinata.

Eventually, Iruka-sensei strolled into the room carrying a piece of paper. He taped it up to the blackboard and then addressed the class. "For those of you who pass, you will be meeting with your jonin instructors again sometime today. For the rest of you, you are to report to Ninja Operations to receive your orders and what is to be expected of you in the next few years. You may check the sheet now."

Everybody poured our of their seats to see if they passed. Team 7 was one of the last teams able to see the sheet:

Active Duty Genin Teams

Team 7: Haruno, Sakura; Hyuuga, Hinata; Uchiha, Sasuke; Uzumaki, Naruto

Team 8: Aburame, Shino; Inuzuka, Kiba; Kanadzuchi, Kaen; Wangetsu, Shiroi

Team 10: Akimichi, Chouji; Nara, Shikamaru; Tadashii, Tsuneni; Yamanaka, Ino

"Yes! We passed." Naruto shouted as he gave a leaping fist pump. "I told you we would Sakura-chan!" Naruto was so riled up in his celebration, he didn't notice some of the other genin staring at his back, obviously angry.

"Um…N-naruto-kun" Hinata tried to say, but she was drowned out by one of her former classmates, "How in the hell did you pass ahead of any of us, you little prick?"

Naruto spun around, the genin that was addressing him was one of the largest boys in the class, actually the only genin bigger than him was Choji. "I guess I'm just better than you are." Naruto said with a grin on his face.

"Why you little…" the larger genin started to raise his fist.

"What? You wanna go a round?" Naruto egged him on, hands already making the seal for the Shadow Clone Jutsu.

"Will you stop picking fights with everybody, you idiot!" Sakura yelled as she punched him on the head, again. As she did it, the larger genins fist was now coming straight at Sakura instead of Naruto. Sakura had inadvertently knocked Naruto out of the way, and put herself in the path of the oncoming fist. Just as she was bracing for impact, she heard the smack of flesh on flesh contact, but she didn't feel any pain. As Naruto and Sakura looked up, Sasuke was standing there with the larger genin's fist caught square in his hand.

"I would highly suggest that you vent your anger in a much more positive way, like training. If I see you so much as look at my teammates wrong again, I'll break your arm." Sasuke threatened, then released the larger boy's hand.

The larger genin rubbed his hand and shot a nasty look at the Uchiha, then to Naruto, "Fine, whatever." He said as he turned to walk away.

Sasuke then looked down at Naruto, "Get up, idiot. We got to go meet Obito at the park." He then started striding out the door.

Damn, where does he get off acting so cool, Naruto thought as he brushed himself off. Sakura was already trailing after Sasuke, and Naruto was too angry to notice the look of concern on Hinata's face as he stalked out of the room. Hinata followed as the others left, unsure if there was something she should say, or even could say.

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Obito was standing under a streetlight in the park, in fact it's the same streetlight that he took Team 7 to just the other day. This place was always special to him. Not only did it have a rather remarkable view of his teacher's face on Hokage Monument, but it was the place he had his first kiss with Rin, and then later proposed to her. Yeah, no matter what happened or whatever went wrong in his life, he could always come here and just float away for a while in good memories. He was enjoying those memories when he heard a familiar voice call out from behind him.

"Hey! Obito-sensei! We passed!" It was Naruto, Obito should have expected it though, the kid had the biggest mouth in Konoha. He was strolling up along with Sakura and Sasuke, Hinata was only a couple of steps behind.

"Congratulations. I certainly hoped you all would pass, I wrote the most flattering review I could think of, it would've taken a miracle for three other teams to knock you off." Obito replied. "Well, with the congratulations out of the way, I need to inform you that from now on you are active shinobi of Konoha. This means that you'll have to be ready to go at a moments notice, and whenever you're not doing missions you'll be training to improve your skills. You kids think your ready?" Naruto and Sakura both responded fiercely, Hinata stammered through her reply, and Sasuke simply nodded. Obito stared at his team for a moment, measuring them up one more time. "Alright, then," Obito continued, "Our usual daily schedule will start at 8 AM, where we'll meet up here. From here, I'll either inform you of any missions that we have to complete for the day, or we will go out to train on our 'days off.' Also, you'll need these…" Obito passed out four small black cell phones. "These are for emergency situations only, they're each preprogrammed to call me, your teammates, Ninja Ops, and the hospital. Keep them on you at all times, these are how you'll receive any urgent mission assignments."

Obito watched as each of the genin looked at the cell phones, figured out who had which number, and got them a little personalized before continuing on, "Now, there's one more thing I need to talk to you about." At this point the was staring at Naruto and Sakura pretty hard, making them both fidget as they stood there, "This applies especially to you two, but for all of you in general. I am requiring you to start wearing appropriate ninja attire. Dark hues, black, and certain neutral colors are acceptable. I will not have you risking your teammates lives because you stick out like a sore thumb, you got that Mr. Bright Orange Jumpsuit?" Naruto just blushed and looked down as Obito looked at him. "Anyway, congrats again on the graduation, I hope to see everyone here tomorrow at 8 AM. Until then, you have the rest of the day off, do what you want with it." with that Obito started to stroll off to parts unknown, even he didn't know where he was going.

----------------------------------------------

"So who's up for some ramen?" Naruto asked excitedly as they started making there way out of the park.

"Good gods, is that all you ever think about, you idiot?" Sakura said, "I'd rather not eat ramen. However, I do know of a good restaurant called Osaka's that's around here, we can go get something there. You up for some lunch Sasuke-kun?" Sakura was staring at Sasuke with her googly eyes, Naruto wished she would stare at him with those eyes once. Sasuke, however, looked like someone just stuffed a pole up his bum.

"I'd rather not. I think I'm just going to go home." Sasuke replied.

"Aww, come on Sasuke, even Hinata is going to go, isn't that right Hinata?" Sakura pleaded while she turned to Hinata.

"Uh… H-Hai." Hinata stuttered as she nodded her head. As long as I get to be near Naruto-kun, Hinata thought to herself.

"See, Sasuke, even Hinata is going. Remember, we're a team, and this is a good chance to lay some of the groundwork for teamwork, we have to get to know each other." Sakura stated somewhat matter-of-factly. However, she thought, if I could Naruto to just buzz off, I'd be even more happy.

"Yeah, Sasuke, you don't have to be a party pooper all the time. This might be one of the last days we have to really loosen up and have some fun." Naruto jabbed. "Of course, I don't even know if you have a fun bone in your body."

"NARUTO!!!" Naruto cringed as Sakura was getting ready to hit him.

"Tch, fine, whatever. You're all so annoying." Sasuke just held up his hands, "If it gets you all to leave me alone that much sooner, so be it."

"Yay, everyone follow me." Sakura squealed. Well, that was a complete 180, Naruto thought, I thought I was a dead man.

Naruto followed behind Sakura and Sasuke for a few blocks, until they came up to a nice looking shop with Osaka's written in bold red letters on a sign over the door. "Here we are!" Sakura exclaimed, as she entered.

A rather pretty serving woman greeted them as they entered the restaurant. She had raven black hair, and beautiful hazel eyes. "Welcome, table for 4?" she asked. Everyone nodded in agreement, and she said "Follow me please." She lead them to a nice window booth with a view of the street and the small playground beyond. Naruto sadly remembered being chased away by angry adults whenever he tried to play there with the other kids, or the other kids were called away, leaving him alone either way.

Hinata noticed the sad look that came over Naruto's eyes. "N-naruto, I-is t-there something wrong?" Naruto perked up and looked at her, a fake grin crowwing his face, but Hinata could tell the grin didn't reach his eyes.

"Nah, Hinata. I'm fine." Naruto said reassuringly.

"O-okay." Hinata replied as they sat down to order. She really wasn't paying attention when they sat, but she ended up on one side of the booth with Naruto, while Sakura sat with Sasuke. She started to blush from the close proximity to the boy she loved. Luckily for her, she managed to not feint.

"Here are some menus." the pretty waitress said. "I'll be back shortly to take your orders. Any of you want anything to drink?"

"Water is fine." Sasuke replied simply.

"I'd like some tea if you don't mind." Sakura replied.

"Milk would be good." Naruto said.

"Umm… W-water is okay." Hinata said while looking through the table.

"Okay, I'll be back with your drinks and to take your orders." The waitress said as she turned to walk back into the kitchen area.

Naruto started to look around, and noticed a familiar pineapple-shaped mess of hair coming from one of the other booths. "Hey Shikamaru!" he cried out. The pineapple-haired youth turned around in his booth to see all of Team 7 sitting in a booth about half the room away from his own team. This could be troublesome, Shikamaru thought, Ino and Sakura being around Sasuke, I wish I was taking a nap or playing a game of chess.

As soon as Naruto said something, everyone stared turning and noticed the other team in the room. Ino, of course, saw Sakura sitting right next to Sasuke. Tha ugly, wide-forheaded excuse for a kunoichi, Ino thought, how dare she sit next to my Sasuke-kun. Sakura simply stuck her tongue out at Ino and held up two fingers in the V for victory sign. Ino, glared at her with a vengeance. If looks could kill, Sakura would have needed a closed-casket funeral.

"You know, glaring at her like that isn't going to help you in any way, right?" Ino heard from beside here, and turned to her teammate. Tsuneni Tadashii was in no way an imposing sight. Even for a kunoichi, she was tiny. In fact she was by far the smallest person to graduate this year. She had strawberry-blonde hair, and deep brown eyes. She wore her forehead protector tied around her left arm, and she wore a plain black outfit that was rather form fitting, even though there wasn't really anything there to show off.

"So what, it makes me feel better." Ino said as she fell back into her seat. "Stupid, billboard forehead." she muttered under her breath.

Before things could get anymore out of hand, the waitress showed back up with Team 7's drinks, and ready to take their orders. They went around the table, Sakura ordered some chicken tempura, Naruto ordered teriyaki steak and shrimp, Hinata requested tofu teriyaki, and Sasuke ordered a sushi platter.

Team 10 began to leave as Team 7's food arrived. As they parted ways, Ino gave Sakura one more good stare down, to which Sakura replied with another stuck out tongue. Team 7 then began to eat in relative silence.

"So what do you think our first mission will be? A escort mission, or maybe infiltration?" Naruto asked.

"No, you idiot. We're new, they wouldn't throw us into anything like that so soon." Sakura replied snappishly. Naruto had rudely interrupted her staring at the hypnotizing sight of Sasuke Uchiha.

Naruto kept on imagining the wild scenarios in which Team 7 would undoubtedly be thrown into. Sakura, in response, kept reminding how much of an idiot he was. Sasuke and Hinata pretty much kept to themselves for most of the meal, each for their own reasons.

-----------------

After Team 7 had finished their meal, everyone was standing outside the restaurant. Hinata watched as Sasuke silently stalked away from the group, and Sakura trailed behind him. Hinata could make out the pleas of Sakura for Sasuke to walk her home and other such things. I took Hinata a second to realize that she was alone with Naruto. She turned to see him looking at Sakura's back with a slightly sad expression on his face. Why would he be sad to see her go, did he like her? Maybe he like Sakura the way Hinata liked him. Hinata wasn't too sure how she felt about that when Naruto turned to leave. She realized that he was going the same way she was going to have to go, so she ran to catch up to him.

"Um… N-naruto?" Hinata shyly said his name as a half-question.

Naruto turned his head to look at Hinata, "What's up, Hinata?"

"Um…I-I…" Hinata started. Damn her weakness. Why couldn't she talk to him like a normal person? Hinata took a couple of deep breaths and composed herself, "I-I'm sorry that I ran away from you the other day." She finally said bowing deeply in apology.

"Eh?" Naruto replied. He put on his thoughtful face. "Oh, you mean that day when I asked you if you thought I was a nice person?"

"H-hai." Hinata answered.

"I actually kinda forgot about that." Naruto said honestly. "Why did you run away from me anyway."

"I…uh….I-I remembered that I had f-family function to a-attend." Hinata lied, "But, I-I d-do think you are a n-nice person Naruto."

"Thanks, Hinata." Naruto said, "That means a lot to me. You know, you're a really nice person too."

It was by sheer force of will, or maybe luck, that Hinata managed to keep on walking. "T-thank you, Naruto." Hinata could feel the fire on her cheeks, she knew she had to be as red as a strawberry.

Naruto, however, was oblivious to his teammates stress. They walked on in silence, Hinata was too embarassed to say much more anyway. Her heart was aflutter, Naruto-kun thought she was a good person, this was one of the happiest days of her short life. Hinata couldn't take much more emotional stimulus before she would faint, she was already feeling light-headed as it was. Eventually, they had to part ways, Naruto to head home, and Hinata to head back to Hyuga manor.

----------------------

Obito knew where he needed to go after strolling the streets of Konoha for about an hour, including helping an elderly lady with her groceries. He needed to head to the Hyuga compound to inform Hinata's father, Hiashi, that Obito would be taking over Hinata's training as a member of Team 7. It was a ritual that had been dropped by most of the clans of Konoha, but the Hyugas were stubborn people set in their traditions.

Obito reached the Hyuga compound shortly. There were a couple of older men watching the front gate. By the way their foreheads were covered, Obito guessed they were branch family members assigned to guard duty. As he approached, the two guards stopped him.

"What is your business within the Hyuga manor today?" one of the guards asked him.

"I am here to request an audience with Hiashi-sama regarding my being his eldest daughter's jonin instructor." Obito replied formally. God, he hated formalities, but it was something that had to be done for Hinata.

"You may enter and enjoy the hospitalities in the foyer," the other guard replied, "but Hiashi-sama is currently in a meeting with the elders of the Hyuga family, it may be a while before he can see you."

Obito put on what he knew was his most reassuring smile, "I'll wait. Thanks." With that he strolled leisurely into the Hyuga compound. It was a quite beautiful place actually. There were several well maintained flower and meditation gardens, not to mention enough hanging plants to make everything else, except the Hokage Monument, in Konoha look rather bland. He waited in the appointed place for about an hour and a half, until another branch family member popped in.

"Hiashi-sama is out of his meeting and can see you now, Obito-san" the branch member said, "If you would follow me please."

Obito followed the young woman down a few hallway until she finally led him into a small meeting room. Inside, Hiashi Hyuga was enjoying a cup of tea. The woman said, "Hiashi-sama, this is Obito Uchiha, he his Hinata's jonin instructor." Hiashi waved the young woman off and invited Obito in.

"So, what is it you wish to speak to me about Uchiha?" Hiashi asked abruptly, apparently he wasn't in any mood for small talk.

"I simply came to inform you that I'll be taking responsibility for your daughter Hinata." Obito responded just as frankly. "Is this okay with you? As an active duty shinobi she will be in the presence of danger and death."

"While I would have some issues with an Uchiha teaching anything to a Hyuga," Hiashi stated, where in the hell did he get off insulting Obito's heritage, "it doesn't matter. The Hyuga clan doesn't need Hinata. She's a loser who has less skill than her sister, who is five years her junior. If that is all you may leave, I'm a busy man."

Obito could barely contain his rage. Honestly, he didn't give a damn about the obvious slight Hiashi made against his Uchiha lineage. What really cooked the goose was how the man talked about his own daughter. It was all Obito could do to leave peacefully without attempting to strangle every last bit of life out of that damned man. As he left the small meeting room and turned to leave the compound, he was stopped short when he saw Hinata standing in the hallway, tears streaming down her face. She must've heard the whole thing, Obito thought, that bastard.

Obito strolled up to Hinata, gave her his most winning smile, hopefully to reassure her. He bent down to her, his mouth to her ear. "I'm sorry that you heard that. He is wrong, though. He doesn't see in you what I do. You have the capacity for kindness, that is not weakness, and in most cases it's stronger than any jutsu or techniques you can learn. You will become strong, Hinata. You will change, and he will see it. I believe in you." Obito rose and looked into his student's eyes. He could still see the sadness, and she was just barely holding back the tears and sobs. "If you ever need anything, come and find me, my doors are always open. Understood?" He asked.

"H-hai." Hinata replied somberly. Obito gave her one more smile before continuing on out of the building. Behind him, he heard the footfalls of someone running. He sighed to himself, no wonder Hinata was as shy as she was. With a home life this depressing, Obito probably would have had self-esteem issues himself. He was amazed that Hinata hadn't tried to take her own life yet, Obito sure the thought would've ran through his mind by now. Man, he couldn't wait to get home, he really needed Rin right now.

---------------------------------------

Naruto was the first person to show up at the park the next morning. He knew Obito-sensei told him to wear something other than his orange jumpsuit, but he really liked the color orange, that and he didn't have any other suitable work-wear. Eh, he wondered if Obito-sensei would even be mad, maybe it was just a joke. Naruto settled himself on it being prank until he saw Sakura-chan strolling up to their meeting spot. Instead of her usual red dress, Sakura was wearing a very dark red, short sleeve shirt and a pair of black compression shorts. Naruto suddenly wasn't as sure of his prank theory anymore.

"What in the world are you doing still wearing that, that, thing?" Sakura asked as she came up to Naruto, "Obito-sensei said to wear something more appropriate, are you trying to get us in trouble, baka?"

"Heh," Naruto replied, shrugging, "I actually don't have anything else that's suitable for missions."

"You mean to tell me that all you have to wear is orange jumpsuits?" Sakura asked, the tone in her voice was that of slight shock, of someone who didn't believe what they just heard.

"Well, uh, yeah." Naruto replied simply.

Shortly after Naruto and Sakura's exchange, Sasuke showed up wearing his usual dark blue shirt, but with black shorts instead of the white ones. Not too far behind him was Hinata, wearing the same thing she always wore.

"Hey! Hinata-chan." Naruto greeted her as she came up to the group.

"G-good morning N-naruto." She replied shyly.

"How are you doing?" Naruto asked.

Hinata thought back to the things she heard her father say to Obito-sensei. Even after the encouragement that Obito-sensei gave her before he left, Hinata spent most of that night in her room crying, and she really didn't get enough sleep for it. "I-I'm okay. Th-thanks for asking."

Time passed slowly as Team 7 waited for Obito to show up. Finally at 9:34, by Naruto's cell phone, Obito strolled up to the designated meeting place.

"You're late, again!" Sakura yelled at their sensei, "Where have you been?"

"Eh?" Obito replied, "Sorry, I was on my way here when I saw a shopkeep with a broken leg trying to clean up before opening up for the morning, so I stopped to help him."

"That's bull…" Naruto said.

"Think what you will, but it's the truth." Obito replied. He looked at the young Hyuga girl in his team. She looked beat, she must not have slept much last night. Probably spent half the night trying to cry herself asleep, Obito pondered sadly. "Anyway, I got our first mission, but first things first." Obito continued as he redirected his gaze to Naruto. "Why, for the love of everything good and sacred, are you still wearing that outfit?"

Naruto gave Obito a sheepish grin and replied honestly, "I don't have anything else to wear."

Obito placed his face into his palm, "You've got to be kidding me…. Alright, Naruto, after our mission today, you and I are going to get you something more appropriate for mission work."

"But, sensei, why am I the only person you're getting mad at? What about Hinata? Her jacket would stick out in a stealth operation too." Naruto complained. Hinata was blushing and making rather firm eye contact with the ground. Obito simply smiled at Naruto.

"Hinata, do you mind showing him?" Obito asked Hinata.

Hinata shook her head and pulled at her coat sleeve and pulling the inside out. Naruto saw that the inside looked like the same material as the outside except it was black instead of light tan.

"Her jacket is reversible, that's why. You have anything else you want to complain about?" Obito said as he turned his gaze back to Naruto. Naruto just shook his head. "Good, now, our mission is to recover the Daimyo's Wife's cat, Tora, who has escaped while the Daimyo and his wife were on a visit to Konoha. This is what our target looks like…" Obito handed a picture of the cat to the team.

"Uh, sensei, what's with the lame mission. Why can't we do something cool, like protecting VIPs or infiltrating an enemy base?" Naruto asked.

"Because, those missions are out of our current skill range. Especially due to you all being a new team. These D-ranked missions are perfect for us to work on our teamwork, and for you all to get to know each others strengths and weaknesses." Obito explained.

"D-ranked missions?" Naruto said as he looked confusedly at his jonin instructor.

"Geez, you baka, did you pay attention to anything the teachers said at the academy?" Sakura scolded, "D-ranked mission are safe missions, they have very little to no chance of enemy involvement."

"What are the other ranks then?" Naruto asked. Sakura looked exasperatedly at Obito. Obito nodded at Sakura informing her to continue her explanation.

Sakura sighed, but continued her explanation. "C-ranked missions are more advanced missions in which there will most likely be resistance, but not the involvement of any enemy ninja. B-ranked missions are more dangerous missions where considerable resistance will be encountered along with a small presence of enemy shinobi. A-ranked mission are some of the most dangerous missions out there, with encounters with enemy ninja almost guaranteed. Then there's S-class missions, also known as the 'suicide class', these missions have the highest chances of death, usually involving fighting Hokage level opponents or other dangerous opponent's such as demons."

"Anyway, you guys are no where near ready to be thrown into an actual combat situation yet, so we will probably be working D-ranked missions for a little while. It's to be expected, and I won't hear any complaining about it, when I feel we are ready to take on a higher ranked assignment, we will. Got it?" Obito finished. All of the genins merely nodded their heads in acceptance. "Good, now we got a cat to catch." With that, Obito led them off into the forest to the last known location of their target.

----------------------------------------

"Where is everyone?" Hinata heard Obito-sensei's voice over the radio in her ear.

"Sector 1 is clear, no sign of the target." That was Sakura's voice.

"Sector 3, clear." This time it was Sasuke.

"Sector 4 is clear. No sign of the stupid cat." Naruto called over the radio.

"Hinata? How's Sector 2." Obito's voice came over again.

"T-there's traces of movement here. The target was definitely here not long ago." Hinata replied as she examined a few small snapped plant limbs leading off in a easterly direction. "Byakugan." Hinata said while she activated her family's kekkei genkai. She noticed some movement heading to east-southeast. "Target spotted, coming your way Naruto." Hinata called out over the radio.

"On it, setting up for a chance to capture." Naruto answered.

"Hinata don't lose it, we'll set up a perimeter to attempt to capture the target." Obito's voice instructed. Hinata launched herself into a chase after the cat. Obito's voice called out some instructions, "Naruto and Hinata, try to force the target north towards Sasuke and Sakura. Try to pin it in."

"Okay." Naruto's voice called over the radio. Hinata saw Naruto lying in wait about 50 meters ahead of her.

"N-naruto, the target will be at your position in about few seconds, be ready." Hinata informed Naruto. As she did, she saw 5 Naruto's pop out from around a tree and effectively cut off the escape routes to the east and south, while Hinata was preventing any chance for the cat to double-back, that left the cat with one way to go, north. The cat was cornered as Sasuke finally managed to grab the cat.

"Mission accomplished." Sasuke said over the radio.

"Good it's time for us to report in then." Obito replied, "To Ninja Ops."

Sasuke kept a hold of the cat as Team 7 walked back into the village and proceeded to head to the big red building in the middle of town. They entered the building and entered a moderately large meeting room full of ninjas pouring over scrolls labeled D, C, B, A, and S. The Hokage wasn't there this afternoon, he had some other issues to take care of.

"Team 7 reporting in," Obito said, "Mission 'Capture the Missing Pet, Tora' completed." As Obito finished, Sasuke handed the cat over to a rather boisterous woman, the Daimyo's wife.

"Good work, Team 7." One of the ninjas working the missions today was Iruka, he gave Naruto a small smile before continuing on, "Sadly, we have no more lower ranked missions left to hand out for today, come back tomorrow, we might have something more you can do. Here's your cut of the pay." Another ninja walked up to Team 7 and handed each member some money.

"Thanks, Iruka." Obito said, "we'll be taking our leave then." He escorted the rest of his team out of the building.

After they were out of the building, Naruto piped up, "Man that took forever, It's almost dinner time."

"Well, we would've caught it sooner if you hadn't scared the thing off so many times, idiot." Sasuke replied.

"What was that?" Naruto said, "You got something you wanna say to me?" He looked at Sasuke with anger in his eyes.

"NARUTO!" Sakura yelled as she punched him in the back of the head, "Quit picking fights with Sasuke-kun!" She then proceeded to storm off.

"Heh, loser." Sasuke said as he strolled by Naruto.

"N-naruto, a-are you a-alright?" Hinata knelt down beside Naruto.

"Such purdy birdies…" Naruto said. Hinata could tell that Naruto was quite out of it.

Obito sighed, teaching this group teamwork was probably going to be harder than he thought. Especially since Sasuke and Naruto both seemed to want to do their own thing most of the time. "Come on, Naruto." He said as he hefted Naruto back to his feet, "We still got to get you some more appropriate combat gear."

-----------------------------

A couple of hours later, Naruto and Obito were browsing in an equipment store. The shopkeep had shot Naruto a dirty look, but his expression eased when he realized Obito, one of the two remaining Uchihas, was with him. Also, the dirty look Obito gave the man back probably helped a little too. Naruto looked more interested in the various weapons and types of explosive tags in the room than he did about getting himself a new work outfit.

"Naruto, remember why we're here." Obito reminded him as he beckoned him over to the clothing racks.

"Hai, sensei" Naruto nodded as he jogged over, "It's just that the weapons are so much cooler."

Obito chuckled slightly, "I know, trust me. But, you really need a better outfit." He gave another long look at that hideous orange jumpsuit.

"But, I like orange…" Obito heard Naruto mutter.

"Anyway, there's a good selection of suitable outfits here. Take your pick." Obito encouraged him.

"You know I like the way this feels." Naruto said as he did a few mock stretches his jumpsuit. "Maybe I could just get something like this in different colors?"

"Good idea." Obito replied, "Let's go ask the shopkeep."

Obito and Naruto went up to the counter and asked the shopkeep about finding a jumpsuit like Naruto's, except without the outrageous color scheme.

"Let's see, that particular style of jumpsuit went out of production a year back when the company that made it went under. But, if I remember I think I have one or two in the storeroom that might fit him." the shopkeep said, "I'll go back and check if you tow don't mind keeping an eye on the place for me."

"It's no problem," Obito said, "We'd be happy too." With that the old man walked back into his store rooms. After he was gone, Obito turned to Naruto and asked, "So, Naruto, what do you think of your teammates?" Obito was just trying to make small talk for the most part, but he was also interested in figuring out how his team felt about each other.

"Well, Sasuke is a stuck-up jerk. He always thinks he's better than me, and I can't stand it." Naruto replied. "Sakura-chan is cute, I like her, even if she hits me when I say something bad about Sasuke. I just wish she'd pay more attention to me, I treat her better than Sasuke does." Naruto looked a little sad as he finished that last part.

"What about Hinata?" Obito prodded.

"Well, she's alright, I guess. She's really shy and doesn't say a lot, so I really don't know what she's thinking. She seems a little weird, but she's always nice to everybody, so she can't be too bad." Naruto said earnestly.

"Well, I don't really think she's to blame for her shyness." Obito mused more to himself than to Naruto. "But she's a nice girl, maybe if you just tried to get to know her better you'd figure out she's not all that weird?"

"Maybe." Naruto answered, "What's with the personal questions anyway, sensei?"

"Eh? No reason, really. I was just curious. That, and I was just trying to pass the time until the clerk gets back." Obito anwered back. "How are things with you lately? I know you have a hard time with the townspeople, because of your… house guest."

"Things are a little better now that I'm a ninja." Naruto looked a little down. "But, I have people now who care about me. The people at Ichiraku, Iruka-sensei, you, and I think at least Sakura and Hinata care a little." Obito laughed inwardly at the last, if only Naruto knew how much Hinata cared, "I don't think Sasuke really cares. So it's better than it was. I can take the angry stares, and the people who just run away from me, cause I know that someone out there cares for me, and I care for them, I have to go on for them."

Obito turned his thought inward. Sasuke was more cold-hearted than Obito really liked, maybe he should've tried to get closer to Sasuke. Obito just felt that after losing his family like that, the last thing he'd wanted was someone he barely knew trying to step in and act like his father. Well, now was the time to change that, Sasuke was going to end up self-destructing if he followed his current path too much longer. Obito turned his attention back to Naruto. "Well, if you do ever have any trouble with anybody, or anything happens that you feel like you need to talk about, I'm always here, okay?"

"Thanks, Obito-sensei." Naruto grinned, not his usual grin that he gave as a façade, a genuine grin. "That means a lot to me."

"No problem," Obito answered, "Looks like the clerk found something."

Indeed, the shopkeep was coming back with an jumpsuit that looked exactly like the one Naruto was wearing, except that instead of orange with bright blue trim it was black with a navy blue trim. The shopkeep addressed them as he returned to the desk, "This is the only one I had left that looked like it fit the kid. You might want to try it on, dressing room is over there." The shopkeep pointed to a couple rooms against the back wall. "Left's for boys, right's for girls."

Naruto took the new suit and walked into the dressing room. Obito was just casually looking around when he heard the shopkeep said to him, "What's a respectable ninja like you hanging out with that little… punk."

Obito sighed, he really didn't care for ignorance. Just because the Kyubi was inside Naruto, didn't mean that Naruto was the Kyubi. He answered simply, "He's my genin, he's a member of my team. As his jonin instructor, it's my responsibility to make sure he's adequately prepared, and that means not wearing colors that put a bullseye on your back."

"If you ask me, we'd all be better off if he was…" The shopkeep didn't have a chance to finish his statement.

Obito spun around and with eyes of fire and a voice of pure poison he said, "You do not want to finish that sentence sir." The shopkeep was taken aback, and Obito knew why, he could feel that he had his Sharingan active. While Obito was staring down the poor man, he heard the creak of a door opening behind him, he quickly deactivated his Sharingan and turned around to face Naruto.

"Well that looks a lot better." Obito complimented, "How does it feel?"

Naruto moved around in it, and did a few more of those mock stretches, "Well it's a little more loose than my old one. It feels a little too big, but it's not that bad."

"That's fine." Obito answered, "It gives you some room to grow into it. At least you won't have to worry about finding a new outfit for a year or two."

"Yeah, I guess." Naruto said smiling, "How much is it?"

The shopkeep looked at Naruto, then at Obito, then put on a thoughtful expression, "Well, that was a forty dollar suit when it first came out, but since all it's been doing is taking up room in my storeroom, and I was probably going to give it to charity when I cleaned out my back rooms, I'll give it to you for fifteen."

"That sounds reasonable," Obito said as he watched as he reached for his wallet.

"Wait, sensei. I want to buy it." Naruto said.

"Are you sure, Naruto? I know that the pension you receive from Konoha isn't that much, I don't want you to overextend your funds." Obito said.

"It's okay, I eat a lot of ramen, and luckily it's really cheap, so I've managed to save a lot of money." Naruto held up a little frog shaped coin purse that was filled almost to bursting. Obito had to keep his jaw from dropping. "I'd also like to purchase some new equipment while I'm here. I think I got the money."

"Well, it definitely seems like you have the money, try not to splurge though. I don't want to hear about you trying to bum money off people cause you spent all your money on unneeded things." Obito chided him.

Naruto went over and looked at all the weapons, and it didn't take him long to make his purchases. A few minutes later, Obito and Naruto were walking down the street. Naruto was holding a bag that held a new set of a dozen kunai, 3 exploding tags, and one Fuuma Shuriken.

Obito just had to ask, "Naruto, why did you get the Fuuma Shuriken?"

"Oh, I saw it and I thought that there might be a pretty cool trick I could pull off with it in a battle, so I decided I might as well get it and see if my idea would work or not." Naruto answered with a prankster's gleam in his eye.

Obito just smiled at him and wondered what kinds of things Naruto would think to do with the giant, folding shuriken. They walked together for a little before Obito made a suggestion, "Hey, Naruto, wanna go get something at Ichiraku's? My treat."

"Oh yeah, I could definitely go for some ramen." Naruto exclaimed happily. With that Obito and Naruto turned down a side street and headed off to Ichiraku Ramen.

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The next day, Team 7 showed up to their usual meeting spot, amazed that Obito was there before they were. He had told them that he got there early to gaze at the Hokage Monument and to let the memories of some of his happiest days wash over him, that the park held a lot of really good memories. After the explanation of his surprising punctuality, he told them that they had no missions for the day and they were going to be spending most of the day training.

That was why Team 7 was now situated in the same training ground that they had passed their final Genin Exam in. Obito was looking at them all pretty hard, as if weighing what kind of training to put them through.

"Well, first things first I need each of you to take these." Obito finally said and threw each of them two pieces of paper.

"What are these for, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"These are special papers that are designed to detect elemental proficiencies. Simply, they are able to tell us what kind of elements someone is attuned to." Obito said as he held up a piece of paper in each hand, he then concentrated some of his chakra into each one. The paper in his left hand smoldered like it had been burned, and the one in his right crumpled and turned to dust. "If you hold one in each hand and focus your chakra to your hands the paper reacts in a way that will tell you your primary element in your primary hand, and your secondary element in your off-hand. Since, I'm left handed my primary, or strongest, element is Fire. While my secondary element, or my strongest element out of the other four, is Earth. Most, if not all, ninjas have two elemental affinities. So let's go around, starting with you, Sakura."

Sakura focused her chakra to her hands, the paper in her right hand sliced cleanly in half and the one in her left became wet. Obito explained, "I know from your files that you're all right handed, so that means your primary element is Wind and your secondary element is Water, Sakura. Next is you Sasuke."

Sasuke did the same as Sakura, but his papers came up as smoldering in his right, and a crumpled paper that didn't turn to dust. "Sasuke, your primary is Fire, which is usual for Uchiha, and your secondary is Lightning." Obito explained, "Alright Hinata, your turn."

Hinata did the same as those before her, the paper in her right hand crumbled into dust and the one in her left sliced clean through. "Earth, then Wind." Obito shortened his explanation, "Naruto."

Naruto focused his chakra into his hands, the paper in his right hand was sliced into several pieces, and the paper in his left was actually giving off sparks. "Whoa, Naruto, you're pumping a little too much chakra into those." Obito said, Naruto immediately stopped, "but you're affinities are definitely Wind and Lightning."

"S-sensei," Hinata said, "w-what's the importance of us knowing w-what our affinity is?"

"I'm kinda glad you asked Hinata." Obito answered, "You see, knowing their proficiencies is very important for shinobi. The reason for this is that when you use jutsu of an element that you have an affinity for the jutsu is more powerful than if someone without that affinity used it. Also, it's generally easier for you to learn a jutsu that you have an affinity for."

"Ah, that's pretty neat, sensei" Naruto said grinning.

"Well, now that we know where your strengths lie, it's time to start some more serious training, while I'm going to try to teach each of you some elemental jutsu to use, I saw some interesting things in your files that I think we need to work on in our first real training session together."

"What's that going to be, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"Well, in your case Sakura, your academy teachers said that you have a natural talent for genjutsu, both using it and dispelling it, so I want to teach you some more advanced genjustu to help you. Sasuke, I know you've trained hard on our clan's fire techniques, so I'm going to help you learn some more advanced ones. Naruto and Hinata, you two are going to be helping each other." Obito explained

"What are we going to be helping each other with?" Naruto asked.

"Well to put it frankly, Naruto you have amazing stamina and an enormous chakra pool to draw on. However, according to your instructors at the academy and your recent show with the chakra paper, your chakra control is atrocious. Hinata, while you have well above average chakra control, the instructors also said that your stamina and chakra is way below average as compared to the rest of your class. So, you two will train together, with Hinata's Byakugan she'll be able to instruct you how to control your chakra better, Naruto, and meanwhile by having to train with someone with as inexhaustible chakra supply as you, she'll increase her own chakra supply." Obito answered. He noticed Hinata was blushing heavily, but whether it was because she had her shortcomings laid out so plainly or she was going to be training almost one on one with Naruto, Obito couldn't tell. "Alright, Hinata and Naruto, I'll start with you two."

Hinata and Naruto came over to Obito and watched intently as he showed them their exercise. "This is a simple chakra control exercise." Obito explained as a small amount of chakra appeared in his hand and emitted a white light. "The brightness of the ball here is directly influenced by how much chakra put into it. I want you two to pass the ball of chakra between you while keeping it the same brightness. Hinata, you are to keep your Byakugan active for the duration of this exercise, and instruct Naruto on how to keep his chakra under control. Also, the longer this goes on the harder you'll find to keep up, I want you to push yourself as hard as you can. You should start to see improvement in your chakra capacity after the first few times you do this exercise."

"H-hai, sensei" Hinata said. She was blushing heavily again.

"Well I'll leave you two to it then." Obito said as he turned his attention to Sasuke. He could already see large flashes of light as Naruto was attempting to get his chakra under control, and he could hear muttered instructions coming from Hinata.

"Alright Sasuke, you know Katon: Grand Fireball Jutsu, correct?" Obito asked, Sasuke nodded. "Okay, well this is the next step. Instead of one giant flame, Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu, fires several smaller fireballs which are much harder to dodge, and can hit more targets as well as going farther than the Grand Fireball." Obito proceeded to go through the hand signs and shouted, "Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" and peppered the stone stumps with several basketball sized fireballs. "Did you catch the handsigns?"

"Hai." Sasuke replied.

"Well then, have at it. I hope to see you master it by the end of the day." Obito said as he left.

"So what are you going to teach me, sensei?" Sakura looked expectant.

"Well, I know that the academy doesn't go much into genjutsu except for transformations and regular clones." Obito explained, "So I'm going to have to break you in on some lower level illusions. First of let's start with the Endless Journey Jutsu. This is a basic jutsu that makes the target believe he's moving to wherever his destination is when he's actually standing still or maybe walking in circles." Obito then demonstrated the hand signs to Sakura. "Alright, you're going to be training on me, so let's begin."

Team 7 trained this way for hours. By the time they had taken a break for lunch, Naruto was having much smaller spikes and dips in his chakra control of the glowing sphere. Hinata was almost ready to pass out from chakra depletion. Sasuke had small burn marks on his hands and around his mouth and almost all the grass around the three stone stumps was singed or burned to a crisp. Sakura had mastered the Endless Journey Jutsu, even Obito was impressed with her control of the genjutsu, the instructors at the academy were right, she really had a natural talent for it.

"Alright guys, we go to get lunch then we're coming back for the last part of our training, you'll be putting your new skills to use in a sparring match." Obito said as they started to return to town.

Naruto's stomach growled loudly, Hinata jumped as the sudden noise startled her. "About time, sensei, I could eat a whole horse." Naruto said, "We going to get ramen?"

Sasuke and Sakura looked exasperated, and Obito just grinned, "Naruto, I know you like ramen, but not all of us feel the same, I think we'll go somewhere with a more balanced menu."

Naruto looked a little down that they weren't going to his favorite restaurant. Obito didn't care though, that boy couldn't eat ramen all the time, it would be bad for him.

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After a small lunch, Team 7 returned to training ground 19. Obito noticed that his team was all a little worn out from their training, except for Naruto. Hinata looked the worst out of everybody, lunch and the small break had helped her a little, but she was still suffering from the effects of low chakra. Obito knew how he was going to conduct theire sparring session before they got back to the training ground. Naruto was going to have to be paired with Hinata in order to keep the teams balanced. Not long after Obito had reached his decision they had came back into the clearing of the training area..

"Alright, this is our last bit of training for the day." Obito said. "this is going to be a two on two sparring contest. You can use any abilities you have, but are not, under any circumstances to use deadly force or cause serious harm to your opponents."

"So who are the teams, sensei?" Naruto asked with a grin on his face, Obito didn't have to be a psychic to know that Naruto wanted to get his hands on Sasuke.

"In order to keep teams fair, I'm putting you together with Hinata, since you have the most chakra left and she has the least." Obito explained. "That leaves Sasuke and Sakura together on a team." Obito could see Naruto's eyes light up. "So, Hinata and Naruto to one side and Sasuke and Sakura to the other."

Each team lined up on different sides of the of the training grounds. Sasuke and Naruto were staring daggers at each other, and Sakura was attempting to glare a hole through Naruto. Obito smiled slighty, it was going to be an interesting match. "You may begin."

Naruto started to make the sign to release his Shadow Clone Jutsu, but Sakura was quicker, "Endless Journey Jutsu!" Naruto just stopped. Obito knew that he was probably wondering around in a forest or something similar at the moment. That Left a weakened Hinata in an one-on-one with Sasuke, who had diverted his path from Naruto after he realized his teammate had used the genjutsu. As Sasuke approached Hinata assumed her families patented Gentle Fist fighting stance, and had activated her Byakugan. At this rate, however, this battle wasn't going to last long. Hinata was managing to hold her own against the Uchiha heir and was managing to fight to a standstill. Obito knew having to adapt to the Hyuga fighting style was difficult if you had never faced it before, he had to do the same thing in his second Chunin Exam when he had to fight a Hyuga in the final rounds. Sasuke struggled a little at first but he was figuring out the Gentle Fist style quickly making sure to dodge more whenever possible instead of blocking as a Jyuuken strike could still deal some nasty damage through a block. Hinata was faltering, she was already weak, and facing what was already a stronger opponent. She stumbled and almost took a kick to the side of her head, but she just barely managed to get an arm up to block. Obito knew that the only way for Hinata to stay in the fight was to free Naruto from the genjutsu. It seemed that Hinata had realized this as well, cause even as she was fighting Sasuke, she was working her way over to Sakura.

Sasuke managed to protect Sakura from Hinata. Things weren't looking could for the Hyuga. Hinata made a desperate charge for Sakura, and Sasuke moved in front to protect, but was surprised by the fact that the charge was a ruse forcing Sasuke to intercept, and when he threw a punch meant to divert Hinata away from Sakura, Hinata had grabbed his arm and threw him over her shoulder and straight into Sakura, forcing the pink-haired kunoichi to the ground and breaking her concentration on her genjutsu. Naruto shook his head as the genjutsu on him faded. He turned just in time to see Sasuke recover and land a kick into Hinata's midsection, doubling her over.

"Hinata!!!" Naruto shouted as he made the sign and shouted, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Ten Narutos came into existance, and Sakura just looked bewildered, there wasn't any way she could ensnare all of the Narutos in her genjutsu. Sasuke turned to face the oncoming onslaught and began the seals for his new jutsu.

"Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Sasuke said as he leapt back into the air to get a better shot at the Naruto clones, the jutsu managed to disperse half of the clones comnig his way. As Sasuke landed he engaged in a taijutsu battle with the remaining clones. The Narutos held their own for a small while, but Naruto's taijutsu form was absolutely terrible, and Sasuke was the best overall in his graduating class, Sasuke's forms where cleaner and crisper and led to him managing to destroy all the clones fighting him. He spun to find the real Naruto, to see him sitting Hinata down away from the fight. Obito could see that Hinata was blushing heavily and looked like she could faint.

"Are you okay, Hinata?" Naruto asked.

"H-hai, Naruto." Hinata replied sheepishly. Even as he laid her down she was beginning to try and stand back up.

Sasuke didn't waste any time, and began his charge of Naruto, but couldn't get there before Naruto had released more clones. Sakura had finally regained her composure and charged into the fray with a kunai drawn. Hinata was still struggling to regain her balance, leaving Naruto on his own. Naruto was able to fight Sasuke and Sakura to long enough for Hinata to regain enough strength to get back into the fight. From then on the fight degenerated into a stalemate where neither side could gain a solid advantage. Obito let the session continue on for about an hour before calling a stop to it. He then called them all over to critique their performances.

"I saw some good things from everybody tonight. Sasuke and Sakura, who showed good teamwork with each other at the beginning, and you each showed some decent mastery of your new techniques. Hinata, you showed some good quick thinking skills, and Naruto your mastery of the Shadow Clone Jutsu and how much chakra you have still impress me." Obito complimented. "But everyone has things to work on. After your initial plan went awry, Sasuke you just went and tried to do everything on your own, same for you Naruto. Sakura, after your genjutsu failed, you had trouble contributing, your taijutsu and weapon combat skills are below average, and you don't know enough ninjutsu yet to contribute in that role. Naruto, your taijutsu is absolutely horrendous, you have some good improvisational skill, but you really need to work on the basics. Hinata, your chakra pool is still rather shallow, and you don't seem to have any other skills beyond your taijutsu."

Each of the genin took the news in their own way. Sasuke didn't show much one way or the other. Sakura and Naruto both took the news similarly, elated at the praise, and slightly down at the criticism they received. Hinata just looked at the ground and pushed her forefingers together in her nervous habit.

"Anyway, good training session today. I'll see you guys again tomorrow." Obito said as he waved to them, "I gotta be getting home, Rin'll kill me if I'm late for dinner again." He then disappeared.

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Team 7 had split up early into reentering Konoha. Sasuke had left like he normally did, to do whatever it was Sasuke did. Naruto also left to go get dinner at Ichiraku's. Neither Sakura nor Hinata went with him, Sakura because she didn't like him, and Hinata because she had a family function to attend. That left Sakura and Hinata walking together for a while. While they had walked on in silence for a while, Sakura finally broke the ice.

"So, Hinata, what do you think of Sasuke-kun? Isn't he the coolest guy ever?" Sakura asked.

"U-uh, w-well, he's alright I guess. He's definitely strong, and will most likely be a great ninja, but he scares me a little though." Hinata answered truthfully, "His eyes seem cold at times, d-distant."

Well at least I don't have to worry about her trying to steal away my Sasuke-kun, Sakura thought to herself. "Well, then what do you think about Naruto-baka?" She asked, just trying to make polite conversation.

Hinata's face turned a deep scarlet, "I-I, umm…" Hinata just trailed off without saying anything. She just walked along pushing her forefingers together. It didn't take a mind reader to figure out that there was something there.

"Hinata? Do you like Naruto?" Sakura probed. Hinata turned an ever deeper shade of red, if that was even possible, and all she could do was nod her head. "Have you ever told him?" Hinata shook her head. "Why?"

"W-well, I-I just don't have the courage." Hinata answered sheepishly.

Sakura sighed, "We need to break you out of your shell Hinata. That baka is oblivious to the feelings of others, it'd take forever before he'd notice you the way you are now. I'll help you get to him, even if I don't understand what you see in him. We're a team now and that makes you a friend."

"T-thank you, Sakura-san." Hinata bowed, she was still blushing.

"Just Sakura is fine Hinata. There's no need for honorifics. It's something I'd be glad to help you with." Sakura replied. "Well here's were we part I guess, I'll see you tomorrow Hinata. Bye." Sakura waved as she went down a side street that led to her house.

"G-goodbye, Sakura." Hinata said back as she continued down the path to her own home.

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A/N:

I do not own Naruto or any of the characters there-in, however, the Original Characters, Shiroi Wangetsu, Kaen Kanadzuchi, and Tsuneni Tadashii and any other original characters are mine. Just getting the legal stuff out of the way.

Thanks for the initial reviews, and to address them. I am sorry Hinata was so OOC at the end of Chapter 1, it was not my intention and I think I rushed through that particular section. I am going to leave it as a reminder to myself to take the time to develop my characters correctly, however, once I'm confident that I've learned my lesson, I fully intend on going back and correcting that error.

Thank you all for taking the time to read my work, it's very uplifting seeing my inbox fill up with all the alerts of people putting my story on their story alert, I appreciate it, and I hope I don't disappoint.


	3. Chapter 3 Into the Land of Waves

Four Man Squads

Chapter 3 - Into the Land of Waves

Naruto awoke at the same time he had been for the past few weeks. After starting in his duties as and active duty genin he had never had to wake up so early before, and he was still getting used to it. He cooked up his ramen, and sat to eat in the relative silence of his small apartment, afterwards he hopped in the shower. Just the normal start to a normal day. Naruto spent a couple of minutes deciding which of his new jumpsuits he was going to wear, after Obito had taken him to get his first one he had scoured all of the equipment and clothing shops in Konoha trying to find more. He had managed to find 2 more of the suits that fit him, one was black like the first but with a forest green trim instead of navy blue, and his favorite was one that was such a dark shade of orange that you could swear it was brown with a trim of black. He pulled out the black and forest green suit yanked it on and rushed off to the Ninja Ops building. Yesterday after they had finished with their second mission of the day, Obito had told them that he had a surprise for them.

Naruto dashed down the stairs to his apartment like he always did. As he landed on the ground after the final few steps, he looked around and was slightly disappointed. Usually, whenever he came down the stairs he could usually spot someone else from his team. After looking around for a bit, the reason finally hit him, they weren't meeting in the usual spot today, so that meant that they didn't have to walk by his apartment. Naruto took off at towards Ninja Ops, maybe he would run into someone on the way. Sadly, Naruto didn't see anyone else from his team until he reached Ninja Ops. Oddly, Obito was actually already there waiting on them.

"So now that everyone is here I guess I should explain the surprise." Obito explained as the genin gathered, "You all have shown improvement in the last few weeks. So much, in fact that I've put in for a C-rank mission for us."

"Really?" Naruto all but shouted, "You mean we finally don't have to do stupid stuff like pulling weeds or catching escaped pets?"

Obito smiled down at the excited boy, "Yep, we're finally going to do something cool."

"Umm…S-sensei?" Hinata's shy voice barely broke through Naruto's celebration

"Yes, Hinata?" Obito replied.

"Well… A-are you sure that we are ready?" She asked looking away from him.

"Positive, all of you are ready." Obito said. "Besides, I'm still going to be with you."

Obito looked at his team one more time before taking them into the mission assignment room. Hinata's chakra reserves had at least doubled as far as Obito could tell, but he would be the first to tell you that he wasn't the best at recognizing chakra levels. Naruto had learned an astounding amount of control, and was probably ready to start the tree climbing training. Sasuke was Sasuke, he continued showing why he was considered the genius of his generation, all of his teachers said that the only ninja out of the last few classes that could even match up to Sasuke was Neji Hyuga who had graduated the year before. Finally, Sakura was still impressing him with her mastery of genjutsu at such a young age, she had the best chakra control he had ever seen at her age. Not to mention that they all had began mastering jutsus of their primary elements.

"Anyway, let's get on with it, our client isn't going to want to wait for forever." Obito said and ushered his team on towards their briefing.

The room was the same one that they turn their missions in at, it served as both the briefing and debriefing room for all missions, or at least most of them. As Obito and Team 7 entered the room, the Hokage, who was attending to the missions today along with a few chunins that Naruto didn't recognize.

The Hokage looked up from the scrolls in front of him to appraise the team that had just walked in, "Well, if it isn't Team 7. I understand that you have recommended them for a C-rank Mission Obito."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Obito replied.

"Well then, I trust in your judgment, and so I am assigning you a protection mission."

"Who are we protecting? A feudal lord? A princess?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"I'll let him introduce himself. Come on in, Tazuna." The Hokage gestured to the door.

Naruto turned around to see an old man, wearing a rope around his head, carrying a bottle clearly marked as sake. Tazuna took a sip out of the bottle before saying, "Are you sure these brats can protect me? They look like nothing but kids."

"They're more than qualified, Tazuna." Obito replied, "plus I'll be along just in case."

"Anyway, Tazuna is a bridge builder from the Land of Waves." The Hokage briefed him, "He is finishing a bridge to connect the mainland to the island country. This will allow a more stable and secure route for traffic and trade into and out of the country. Do you accept the mission?"

"Hai." Obito said for team 7.

"Alright, pack your bags. You have one hour, then you'll be escorting Tazuna off to the Land of Waves."

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Hinata didn't take long to pack her bags, she brought all the essentials, a couple of changes of her uniform, bedroll, weapons, some food and a canteen, and a tent. After she was done packing, she descended into her father's study to inform him that she was going on a mission and would not be back in a couple of weeks. She stopped at the door to the study and knocked.

"Come in," Hinata recognized her father's voice and opened the door. He stared at her intently, "What is it Hinata?"

"I-I w-was just coming to I-inform you that m-my team has been assigned to a mission that will take us out of the v-village for at least a couple of weeks." Hinata said as she bowed.

"Thank you for informing me, Hinata. Make sure that you don't get in the way of your teammates with your weakness. I don't want to hear about how your team failed their mission because of you, understood?" Hiashi said sternly.

"H-hai, father." Hinata answered as she bowed again.

"If that is all, you are excused." Hiashi went back to perusing the scrolls on his desk.

Hinata turned and exited the room. As she walked up to her room, she thought about what her father had said. She wasn't going to fail this time, not while Naruto watched. She was going to be strong. She had to be strong.

She entered her room, gathered her pack, and left the Hyuga compound to meet her team at the gates of Konoha. She actually felt relief at the fact that she wasn't going to be anywhere near the Hyuga manor, her father, or any member of her clan for a couple of weeks. She was going to be spending time with Naruto, and her team. Her thoughts cheered up with each step she took away from home and towards her mission.

---------------------------------

Roughly 45 minutes after receiving their mission, Team 7 was at the gates of Konoha with Tazuna. Obito looked around at his team, Sasuke was wearing his usual cool shell, Sakura was just admiring Sasuke, Naruto was fidgeting with nervous excitement, and Hinata was just nervous.

"Alright, so everyone sure they have everything they need?" Obito asked the group. Everyone nodded. "Good, then I guess we're off."

"Alright! Let's go!" Naruto shouted and took off at full speed. He stopped after he was some yards away and realized no one was following. "Why are you all going so slow?"

"Naruto, it's a long trip to the Land of Waves. You might be able to run all the way there, but the rest of us can't. So, we are going to be moving at a more reasonable pace." Obito explained.

"Are you sure he's a ninja?" Tazuna asked, "He seems a little stupid for a ninja."

"Who are you calling stupid, old man?!" Naruto shouted in response, "I'll kick your ass!"

"Naruto," Obito was starting to get a little exasperated, "you do know we are assigned to protect Tazuna-san, correct? 'Kicking his ass' would be a direct violation of our orders. Anyway, you need to calm down, you'll get your chances to prove how good of a ninja you are."

Naruto grinned at Obito and then looked at Tazuna, "Just you wait, I'll show you what a true ninja can do." Naruto then turned around continued walk along the road.

Team 7 and Tazuna walked on in relative silence for the better part of an hour. Nothing was out of the ordinary, as far as Obito could see, until they passed a small puddle of water in the road. It hasn't rained in this area in a week at least, and in the heat of the summer in the Land of Fire, a puddle wouldn't last that long. The only conclusion Obito could reach was that the puddle was abnormal in nature, most likely ninja. While it might pertain to the mission, Obito had quite a few enemies from other countries that would want to get revenge, he figured he'd wait and see what happened.

After Obito and his team walked by the puddle, Obito could feel the small surge of chakra and killing intent, if Obito had any doubts about enemy ninja before, he didn't know. He quickly and silently signed for the substitution jutsu, things were going to get interesting. Soon he felt a bladed chain tighten around him, he had to do it now. Suddenly, he was sitting in a tree, watching himself being shredded into little tiny pieces. It was kind of funny really, Obito had to have watched his own gruesome murder hundreds of times. He hated to do this to his team, but he needed to know who the ninja were after, him or his client. Obito heard Sakura scream out his name, as little pieces of him fell to the ground.

Obito watched in silence, as the two ninja who had just "killed" him went after Naruto. Damn, Naruto had frozen and wasn't making any move to either get out of the way or defend himself. Obito was about to make his move when he noticed Sasuke launch into action and into the air. First, Sasuke threw a shuriken, it pinned the chain connecting the two enemy ninja to a tree. After that, Sasuke threw a kunai into the hole of the shuriken securing the chain to the tree in such a way that it would have taken more time than possible in the heat of a battle. After all of this, Sasuke landed on the now snared arms of the two connected ninja, grabbed them by those arms and kicked both of them square in the face.

Obito had to admit, he was slightly impressed with how Sasuke handled the situation. While the rest of the team seemed to be in shock, Sasuke had managed to take charge of the situation against enemies that were more than likely more experienced and stronger than Sasuke was. A metallic click brought Obito back into the fight, the metal claws that were attached to the chain had detached. Now the two enemy ninja were no longer connected and free to move again. One went after Naruto, and the other after Tazuna. Obito couldn't wait any longer, he launched out of his tree and took out the one headed toward Naruto with a single punch. Without any pause, Obito went after the other foe. He barely had time to see that Hinata and Sakura had regained enough of their composure to take up defensive positions, Sakura with a kunai drawn and Hinata in her family's traditional Gentle Fist taijutsu stance. Also, somehow Sasuke had taken up a position in front of the two girls. However, Obito managed to catch up to the enemy shinobi and knocked him out with a blow to the back of the head.

Obito was standing there with one of the shinobi tucked under his right arm and the other thrown over his left shoulder. He looked at Naruto, "I owe you an apology, Naruto. I waited before making my move and because of it, you got injured." Naruto looked down at his hand, he had sustained a couple of scratches down the back of it. Obito continued on, "Anyway, Nice job Sasuke. You handled yourself well. Also, Hinata and Sakura, good job you guys did as well.."

"Hey, you alright, scaredy-cat?" Sasuke taunted Naruto. Obito sighed, did he have to do this now?

Naruto's face contorted into a mix of anger and shame. He looked like he was going to start on one of his rants, Obito cut him off, "Save your energy, Naruto. Those claws are poisoned. The more you do, the faster the poison will spread." Obito tied up the two Hidden Mist ninja, he could tell now because of the insignia on their forehead protectors. After Obito made sure the ninjas were secured to the tree and couldn't make any hand signs and had no other ways to get out.

"Naruto come here." Obito walked towards Naruto, "Let's get that poison out of your system." Obito flashed a few quick hand signs and a blue glow came over his hands.

"What are you doing, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"This is a detoxification jutsu. It works on most standard poisons. My wife, Rin, is a medical ninja, and I've managed to pick up a few tricks from her." Obito explained, "It takes a lot of control to perform medical jutsu correctly. I'm not that good at it, but luckily the poison those guys were using is pretty basic, and the jutsu to neutralize it is rather simple too. Alright, Naruto that should do it, you should be good now."

Naruto looked up at Obito, "Thanks, Obito-sensei." Obito looked down at his charge. The boy was obviously a mix of emotions, the anger and shame from earlier, but now there was an shade of determination in his eyes. Obviously Naruto was vowing to himself never be shown up again or not losing Sasuke or something of that nature.

"Now that that's taken care of, Tazuna-san, I have some questions." Obito said. The old man flinched.

"What is it?" Tazuna replied.

"Can you explain to me why there are chunin-level Hidden Mist ninja after you?" Obito went straight to the point.

"How do you know they're after me?" Tazuna replied, however his nervous jitters and his eyes gave him away. Tazuna was worried, he was holding back information.

"If I had wanted, I could have easily defeated these two ninjas. However, I needed to know if they were after me or you. If they were after me, they would have had no reason to continue to fight after I was dead, and they would have made a better effort to make sure I actually was dead. Since they did the opposite, and seemed more interested at getting to you, I believe that they are more than likely out for you." Obito explained, "If this is true and you have shinobi after you, this becomes a B-rank mission at the least. The C-rank mission you put in for is for us to protect you from common thieves and thugs."

"I guess you got me then," Tazuna answered, "the truth of the matter is this, there is a very dangerous man who want my life. You've probably heard of him, Gatou of the shipping magnate of the same name."

"Why is he after you?" Obito continued his questioning.

"As you know, the only way to get to the Land of Waves is by boat. Gatou owns all the harbors in the Land of Waves and uses the country as his own storage facility. While his business is completely legitimate on the surface, he secretly smuggles drugs and various other contraband. Since he controls all the imports and exports in the Land of Waves, he basically uses the country as a closet. If anyone stands up to him, he uses rogue ninjas and gangs to make sure that he has no resistance for long."

"I see, since you're building a bridge to the mainland, you're a direct threat to his control of the area." Sakura said. Obito smiled, she picked up on things quite well.

"So, these ninjas are Gatou's hired hands?" Sasuke asked rhetorically.

"Then, why lie about the job?" Obito needed more answers.

"Simple, the Land of Waves has almost no money. Even the Daimyo is almost bankrupt. We don't have the money to pay for the more expensive, high-ranked missions. I'd understand if you quit now." Tazuna explained, then put on a big grin, " I'd die, but don't worry about it. My grandson would only cry for a couple of days, and my daughter will live a sad life forever hating Leaf shinobi. But, it won't be your fault."

Obito sighed, Tazuna laid down a thick enough guilt trip there. There's no way they couldn't help him now, "What do you guys think?"

"We have to help him." Naruto responded, "that Gatou bastard has to pay."

"I-I agree with N-naruto." Hinata chimed in.

"It's hard to say no after a story like that." Sakura said.

Sasuke simply nodded, no doubt wanting to test his strength. Obito was proud of his team, willing to face danger they weren't prepared for, for no better reason than because the people asking needed the help. Obito finally ended the conversation, "Well, it looks like we are in agreement, we will continue to protect you. We need to hurry and meat the boatman who's supposed to be crossing us over to the Land of Waves. I'll call in these guys, I think I remember them in the Bingo Book, the Demon Brothers or something like that. Anyway, let's get going."

Obito called in the capture of the two Hidden Mist Rogues to Konoha and let Ninja Ops know where the pair could be found. Team 7 made good time the rest of the way to the dock where the boat was waiting.

-----------------------------------

The boat trip to the Land of the Waves was unremarkable. Team 7 went in by way of manpower instead of an on-board engine, just to make sure they didn't draw any attention to themselves. Even Obito had to admit that the bridge that Tazuna was working on was very impressive. Frankly, it was one of the largest feats of human construction that Obito remembered seeing anywhere. After paddling on through some floating vegetation, the rower made land at a small rundown dock far away from anywhere.

"Well, this is it for me." the boatman said, "Good luck to you."

"Thanks," Tazuna replied, "Alright, let's get me home safely."

Team 7 and Tazuna walked along a small forest path. Everything was going smoothly, until Naruto decided to take the point.

"There!" Naruto shouted. He had thrown a shuriken in the bushes. Everyone just looked at the point where he threw the shuriken. An awkward silence came over the group for a few seconds. Naruto was the one who broke up the silence, "Heh, just a rat."

"Stop trying to act all cool! There was nothing there!" Sakura yelled.

"Hey, midget! Stop acting like a moron!" Tazuna shouted at the same time.

"Naruto, really. You need to learn to calm down. Those things aren't toys." Obito chided. Then it hit. Something was wrong, Obito could feel it. Someone was here, Gatou was making his move.

"There!" Naruto yelled again, and threw another shuriken.

"I said stop it!" Sakura yelled as she immediately whacked him over the head.

"Oww." Naruto said as he rubbed the back of his head. "Somebody is after us, I swear."

"Yeah right!" Sakura replied as she stormed off.

Obito strolled over to where Naruto had thrown the shuriken. It had cam close to hitting a snow rabbit, a white snow rabbit. However, it was summer, why would a snow rabbit be white this time of year? Obito's mind was racing, he wasn't even paying attention as Sakura was chewing Naruto out. This rabbit must've been kept in a cage, which meant someone had to have brought it here. Shit, this was going to get bad.

"Everyone, down, NOW!" Obito shouted, and everyone did as he said and ducked, as something whirred over their heads. Obito looked up at the massive sword now stuck into a tree. A man wearing what looked like poofy pajama pants, and had the lower half of his face taped up was standing on the sword. Obito cursed in thought, this day just wasn't going to get any easier.

"Hello, Zabuza Momochi." Obito stated simply. He managed to catch Naruto before he could rush the Hidden Mist missing jonin. "Everyone, I need you to stay back and protect Tazuna-san. I'm the only one who can handle him."

"If I remember correctly," Zabuza said, "you're Obito Uchiha, one of the last members of the great Uchiha clan. I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to kill the old man there."

Obito just looked at Zabuza. "Well, looks like there's holding back here." Obito replied as he activated his bloodline trait.

"Oh ho! I already get to see the infamous Sharingan. You honor me." Zabuza replied.

"Sharingan? What the hell is that?" Naruto asked.

"Sharingan. It's a dojutsu that allows the user to see through and defeat all kinds of Tai, gen, and ninjutsu. But that's not all it does…" Sasuke explained.

"Heh, the truly scary thing about it is that it allows the user to copy any jutsu once seen." Zabuza finished. "Back when I was in the Hidden Mist's assassination squad, I was forced to carry a handbook with info on formidable opponents we might face. We had a little section dedicated to you, the Copy Ninja."

"I'm flattered." Obito replied coolly.

"Well, time for talking is over, I got an old man to kill." Zabuza stated as he crouched down on his sword. Zabuza yanked his sword out of the tree and made a bee line for a lake near the path. He was standing on top of the water with his hands in a sign.

"Ninpou: Hidden Mist Jutsu." Zabuza said. Obito watched as Zabuza built up and released a large amount of chakra, the jutsu released what was essentially a very large fog cloud. Zabuza seemingly disappeared.

"Everyone be on guard, he'll most likely come after me first, but you never know. He excels in silent killing most of his targets never see him before they die." Obito explained.

"Byakugan." Hinata said. Obito could only hope that the Byakugan could see through the fog.

"8 points." Zabuza's voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. "Liver, lungs, spine, clavicle vein, neck vein, brain, kidneys, heart. Which one should I hit?"

Obito could feel the murderous intent washing over him. I could hear the four genin shaking in their boots behind him. This intent was hard for even him to bear, he couldn't imagine what the kids were going through.

"Don't worry guys, I'll protect you all, even if it costs my life." Obito reassured them. They all seemed to calm down at least a little. "I don't let my comrades die."

"We'll see about that." Zabuza's voice replied.

"Sensei, above us." Hinata exclaimed.

That split second was all Obito needed, he whipped out a kunai and stabbed Zabuza in the gut as he landed. However, instead of a body and blood, all there was left was water.

"Behind you, sensei!" Naruto yelled. It was too late, Obito couldn't dodge as Zabuza's sword cut him in half at the waist. However, as soon as the sword hit Obito's body exploded into water. Obito was then standing behind Zabuza.

"Don't move an inch." Obito warned. "This fight is over."

Zabuza laughed, "You think it's over? You can't beat me with just your imitations. However, I am impressed you already copied my Water Clone Jutsu. But…" Zabuza imploded into water.

"…I'm not that easy." Zabuza said as he appeared behind Obito. Obito barely had time to duck the sword swing. For his troubles, he caught a foot in the gut, and was sent sprawling to the ground. Obito managed to recover before Zabuza was able to charge back in. Zabuza realizing that he couldn't get an advantage retreated back into the mist.

"Sensei, t-to the left." Hinata shouted. Obito spun to see Zabuza coming at him again, as soon as Obito parried his strike though, Zabuza was back into the mist.

"Your eyes are annoying girl." Zabuza said.

"S-sensei he's coming after us." Hinata replied.

Obito moved as quickly as he could. He barely made it as Zabuza landed to Hinata's left and made to strike her down. He blocked the sword with his kunai, if just barely, and not before it cut a small gash in his right shoulder. Zabuza then hit with another kick, this one with much more strength. Obito just barely managed to grab a hold of Hinata and take her along for the ride. If Obito didn't, he was sure that Zabuza would strike her down then and there. Obito landed in the water of the lake.

"Gotcha." Zabuza flashed over to the water and made a few quick signs. "Suiton: Water Prison Jutsu." The water around Obito and Hinata became heavy and turned into a ball, raising a few inches off the surface of the lake.

Zabuza smirked, "Makes it harder for me if your able to move around. Now for the kiddies. Suiton: Water Clone Jutsu." A copy of Zabuza emerged from the surface of the lake. The original Zabuza intimidated the genin. "Wearing forehead protectors and acting like real ninjas. You guys are a joke, a real ninja is someone who has survived staring death in the face numerous times." The clone disappeared.

The genins' reactions were not fast enough, the clone kicked Naruto straight in the face. So hard, in fact, that Naruto's forehead protector fell off as he was flying backwards. Obito tried to say something, but his voice was muffled by the water. Obito looked at Hinata, she was starting to turn blue in the face, she couldn't stay in here much longer and live, neither could he for that matter. Obito looked up to see Naruto charge the clone, and promptly get kicked back again. Obito saw something metallic in his hands, he had retrieved his forehead protector. Naruto stood up.

"Hey, you eyebrowless freak, put this in your damned handbook. The man who will become Hokage. Leaf nin, Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto said as he tied his protector back on his head. "Sasuke, I got a plan. I need your help."

"Teamwork with me, from you?" Sasuke stated in slight shock.

"Let's get wild." Naruto said as he wiped some blood from his mouth.

"A lot of arrogance, child, but do you really think you stand a chance." Zabuza replied.

"You know I'll whoop you." Naruto retorted.

"Hahahahaha! Kid when I was your age, my hands were already stained red with blood. Do you know what the final exam was to graduate to genin in the Hidden Mist?" Zabuza said.

"No, what?" Naruto replied honestly.

"Fights to the death between students. This was the norm until ten years ago, when I took the exam. I killed everyone in my class." Zabuza said. After that shocking revelation, Zabuza's took advantage of the distraction, knocking Sasuke to the ground and starting to kick him into the ground.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto yelled as he rushed towards the water clone. Easily a hundred Narutos appeared in the clearing.

"Well, that's rather impressive." Zabuza stated simply. The clone lifted his foot off Sasuke to get into a better position to defend himself.

"Here I come!" Naruto shouted as all of his clones drew kunai and rushed the Zabuza clone. The Narutos dog piled Zabuza, however the water clone's strength was too much and he shook off and destroyed all the clones in one fell swoop.

The real Naruto started sifting through his bag as he was thrown back and he pulled out the Fuuma Shuriken he had bought a couple of weeks ago. "Sasuke!" Naruto yelled as he threw the folding shuriken to Sasuke.

A look of understanding came over Sasuke as he caught the shuriken. He unfolded it as he stated, "Fuuma Shuriken, the Shadow Windmill.

"A Shuriken won't work on me." the clone stated placidly.

That didn't stop Sasuke though, he threw the giant shuriken with every ounce of strength he had. However, his target wasn't the clone, it was the original.

"I see. You're aiming at the real me. But, it won't be enough." Zabuza said as he caught the shuriken, but he didn't realize that there was another shuriken in the shadow of the first.

"Shadow Shuriken Jutsu eh? Still not enough." Zabuza said as he jumped the second shuriken. However, the second shuriken popped into a puff of smoke as it cleared Zabuza, and in it's place was Naruto wielding a kunai. Naruto threw the knife at Zabuza. Zabuza had to pull back and break his connection with the water prison in order to dodge a lethal strike to the head. A look of complete rage came over the Hidden Mist jonin.

"You damn brat." Zabuza screamed as he charged Naruto. However, before he could get to Naruto with the shuriken he had snatched from the air, Obito had stopped him.

"Naruto, get Hinata back to shore, hurry." Obito said. "Looks like time for round two Zabuza. I won't fall for the same trick twice."

Zabuza just grunted and disengaged, and he started a long series of signs. Obito did the same, and started mimicking the signs.

"Suiton: Water Dragon Jutsu," both men exclaimed at the same time. Two giant dragons made of water clashed and negated each other, sending out a small tsunami from the lake that washed Naruto and an unconscious Hinata onto the shore.

In the clash of water, Zabuza had charged Obito who parried with a kunai. Obito could notice how flustered Zabuza was starting to get, it was in Zabuza's eyes. Zabuza disengaged and started signing again.

"…reading them." Obito said, finishing Zabuza's thought. Zabuza's eyes widened, Obito definitely had him shaken now.

"…freaky eyes are pissing me off." Obito finished another thought, "Is that correct?"

"All you're doing is copying me." Zabuza shouted.

"You can't beat me you monkey bastard." Both men shouted in unison.

Distracted, Zabuza stopped signing. However, Obito didn't.

"Suiton: Giant Vortex Jutsu." Obito said as he finished the last sign. A large wall of water started forming

"Impossible!" Zabuza shouted. The giant whirlpool of water hit him dead on and sent him flying into a tree. Zabuza was beaten.

"It's over." Obito said

"How… can you see the future?" Zabuza asked.

"Yes, and you no longer have one." Obito replied. Right as Obito was about to deal the deathblow, two senbon pierced Zabuza through the neck. Obito was shocked.

"Heh, you're right. He's dead." said a voice. Obito looked up to see what looked like a boy not much older than Naruto or Sasuke in a hunter nin mask. Obito bent down to check Zabuza, he definitely had no detectable vitals and it didn't seem like he was breathing.

"Thank you very much. I have been searching for a chance to kill Zabuza for a long time now." The boy in the mask bowed.

"By your mask, you're a Hidden Mist hunter nin." Obito said.

"You are correct." the boy replied.

Naruto charged up beside Obito, "Who the hell are you?"

"Don't worry, Naruto. He's not an enemy." Obito placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder.

"I don't care about that! Zabuza, a guy that strong, was killed by a kid not that much different from me. We look dumb. I don't understand it." Naruto said.

"Well, Naruto, age doesn't equate power. I'm sure there's probably kids out there that are younger than you but stronger than me." Obito consoled him. "How's Hinata?"

Naruto perked up a little and turned around, she was still unconscious, "She's okay, she's breathing. Sakura had to give her mouth to mouth while you were fighting Zabuza."

"Your battle is now over." the masked boy said, "I must now dispose of this body, it holds many secrets. Farewell." In a flash, the boy was gone.

"All right, let's get Tazuna-san home, and we need to get Hinata some better care." Obito said as he picked up Hinata's limp body.

The rest of the trip to Tazuna's home went by relatively uneventfully.

-------------------------------------------------

Team 7 was introduced to Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami, shortly after reaching his house. Tsunami and Sakura had laid the unconscious Hinata in bed to recover from the fight. After Hinata was taken care of, Team 7 was treated to a wonderful dinner and polite conversation with Tazuna's raven-haired daughter. Soon after dinner was finished, the conversation turned to more serious matters.

"Obito-sensei," Sakura started, "who was that masked kid?"

"He was a hunter-nin. Also known as body erasers, they hunt missing-nin then dispose of the body after the prey is killed. Most, if not all, shinobi carry secret information in their bodies, from kekkei genkai to remnants of medical salves. Getting a hold of a shinobi's dead body can provide one with a wealth of information on wherever that ninja came from. For example, if I died and my body was taken, then the ones who took it would have everything they need to be able to steal the Sharingan. Hunter-nins destroy the bodies of missing-nins as a way to protect the secrets of their village." Obito explained.

However, Obito couldn't shake the feeling that he missed something, something important. Something just didn't add up…

"But, Obito-sensei," Sakura replied, "In the academy we learned that hunter-nin would usually dispose of bodies as soon as possible, why did that hunter take the body and move?"

Obito's eyes widened in shock. That was it, he was so thankful that the fight was over, that he forgot to check the details. "That's right, Sakura. If he needed proof of the kill, he would've simply taken the head or some other distinguishing body part. Also, the weapons that he used where simple senbon needles, commonly used in acupuncture, they have a very low chance to kill someone…"

Sasuke's eyes widened in realization, "No way…" he mumbled.

"I think you understand Sasuke, more than likely Zabuza isn't dead." Obito replied.

"But, sensei, you said Zabuza was dead. You checked him yourself." Naruto shouted.

"I know, but those needle attacks were probably meant to put Zabuza into a comatose, near-death state. Zabuza was so close to death, that without an extensive examination anyone would believe he was dead.

"Don't you think you might be over thinking things some?" Tazuna asked.

"Maybe, but still the pieces add up. The moving of the body and the non-fatal weapons suggest a motive to save not to kill. We'll have to prepare for the worst. If we are lucky, Zabuza is dead and these are just a string of coincidences. Worst case scenario, Zabuza is alive and Gatou might have hired even stronger ninja. We need to prepare." Obito answered.

"What about Hinata, she's still out cold?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not saying we're going to start right now, but starting tomorrow, we're doing some extensive training to get ourselves ready. Hopefully, Hinata will be awake by then." Obito said, "You all have progressed well since we first met. I think it's time we started with some more complex things."

"Have we got time, sensei?" Sakura asked, "Zabuza could return at any moment."

"We have time." Obito answered, "Coming out of a near-death state is very taxing on a persons body. Zabuza won't be able to do anything for at least a few days."

"So, we train until then. Sounds like fun!" Naruto said enthusiastically.

"Doesn't sound like fun to me." a voice called out from the front door. Everyone turned to look at the little boy who had just entered. "Welcome home, grandpa."

"Inari! Where have you been?" Tazuna exclaimed as the boy came to hug his grandfather.

Tsunami looked at her son, "Inari, say hello to our guests, they are Leaf shinobi hired to protect your grandfather."

The boy looked up at his mother, "Mom, they are all going to die."

"What the hell did you just say, brat?" Naruto jumped up and was caught from behind by Sakura.

"Why are you getting all pissed off at a child, baka?" Sakura asked as she restrained Naruto.

"There's no way you guys can beat Gatou." Inari replied simply.

"You listen to me, Inari. I'm an incredible ninja who will one day become Hokage, and I don't know this Gatou guy, but he's got nothing on me." Naruto fired back.

"What are you, stupid?" Inari asked, "If you don't want to die, you should leave." As he said this he turned to leave.

"Where are you going, Inari?" Tazuna asked.

"To look at the ocean from my room." Inari answered as he left and went up the stairs.

"I'm sorry about that." Tazuna said.

"Don't worry about it." Obito replied.

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Hinata awoke in a bed she didn't recognize, in a room she didn't remember. She sat up, the last thing she remembered was being yanked by the back of her jacket, plunging into the lake, and then being trapped in some sort of water ball with Obito-sensei. She had passed out from lack of oxygen not long after that. Where was she?

Hinata got up and put on her clothes, someone had stripped her down to her undergarments before putting her in the bed. She blushed as she thought of someone else undressing her, she certainly hoped it was a woman. She went to the door, it wasn't locked, so it didn't seem that she was a prisoner of any sort. As she opened the door, the smell of food wafted up from the stairs to her left. She realized she was extremely hungry, she must have been out for a while. She descended the stairs to see the rest of her team, Tazuna-san, and a woman and boy she didn't recognize gathered around a table eating breakfast. Naruto was the first to see her, he jumped up and rushed over to her, embracing her.

"It's good to see that your awake Hinata-chan." Naruto said, as he let go of her. All she could do was blush, such close physical contact with the boy she loved left her speechless.

"Do you want some breakfast?" Obito asked her.

Hinata nodded. "H-hai."

"Good, you'll need your strength. We are starting some new training today when we are done with breakfast. Anyway, while you eat, we'll fill you in on what you missed." Obito said as Hinata sat down.

Hinata listened to the recounting of the end of their fight with Zabuza. She was proud when she heard of the plan that Naruto had came up with, and how well it worked. However, she was disappointed in herself, if she had been stronger, Obito wouldn't have had to protect her and he wouldn't have gotten caught in the Water Prison Jutsu. She was holding the team back, just like her father thought she would.

"Don't blame yourself for what happened, Hinata." Obito said. How did he know what she was thinking? "He was a jonin, he would have killed any one of you in an one-on-one. He targeted you because of your ability to see through his mist with your Byakugan. He targeted you because you were strong."

Hinata perked up a little at that. She had been targeted because she was strong, she wasn't sure, but Obito-sensei seemed to be, that was enough for her. She looked over at Naruto, he was currently engaged in an argument with Sasuke and Sakura. Well, more with Sakura than Sasuke. Hinata wondered if Naruto thought she was strong.

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Right after breakfast, Naruto and the rest of Team 7, along with Tazuna, went out into forest to begin their training.

"All right! What kind of training are we going to do, sensei." Naruto shouted his question.

"Tree-climbing training." Obito replied simply.

"Sensei, I already know how to climb a tree." Naruto said disappointedly.

"Ah, but can you do it like this?" Obito said as he built up his chakra. Obito then walked up to the tree and then up the tree. He wasn't using his hands or anything, just strolling up on to the tree. Soon, he was standing upside down on a branch.

"That's really cool, sensei." Naruto said, "but how is it supposed to make us stronger?"

"Simple, really." Obito replied, "This is a way for you to work on your chakra control."

"But, I've been working on that with Hinata-chan." Naruto said.

"I know but that was a basic exercise in which you focused the chakra into your hand." Obito explained, "In this however, you have to gather chakra to your feet, which is a much harder place to gather chakra than your hands. In fact, it's said that gathering chakra to your feet is the hardest place to gather chakra in the whole body. Think of it as a more advanced form of what you have been doing."

Obito looked down at them, or up at them from his perspective. "Well, time for explanations are over, this is something you need to learn with your bodies." he said as he tossed a kunai at each of their feet, "Use those to mark how high you go, and try to get better each time you try. Also, you guys probably won't have the control to walk up the tree, so I suggest that you run."

Each of the genin took a knife and began focusing their chakra to their feet. Then they all took off towards the trees together. Naruto was the first to fall, he didn't even make it up a step, not enough chakra. Sasuke ran a good few steps before the trunk gave way and he was pushed away, too much. Hinata made it a few steps farther than Sasuke before she started to slip. However, Sakura had ran most of the way up her tree and was now sitting on a branch.

"This is pretty easy." Sakura said. Obito smiled, it always seemed that girls were better at this exercise and chakra control in general.

"It seems Sakura is already proficient with chakra control. Naruto, you didn't use enough. Sasuke, you used too much. Hinata, you used just a little less than needed, so you started to slip about halfway up the tree." Obito said. "Exerting just the right amount of chakra consistently and constantly to keep your feet anchored to the tree is what you need to do. Keep trying you three. Sakura, I want you to try walking up the tree."

Hours passed as the four genin continued to walk and run up the trees. Hinata soon got the hang of running and joined Sakura walking up and down the trees. Sasuke and Naruto were having a harder time of it, Sasuke was progressing slowly but surely, and was close to getting to the tops like Sakura and Hinata. Naruto, however had barely progressed more than two or three steps. Sakura was positive that Naruto was going to give up soon. Hinata was trying to will her crush up the side of the tree. Nearly everyone was worn out from the exertion of doing the training.

"Shit." Naruto said as he started to walk away. Sakura smirked as she was proven right. However, she was startled to see him walking towards her and Hinata.

"Hey," Naruto said meekly, "Can you guys, um… give me some tips?"

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Hinata was sitting on a bench watching the men working on the bridge, making sure to keep an eye on Tazuna. The tree climbing exercise went very well for her and Sakura, but Naruto and Sasuke had still not managed to run up a tree. Over the next three days after the start of their training, Sakura and Hinata had been taking turns guarding Tazuna and doing training with Obito. For Sakura, this meant learning genjutsu, and at her insistence medical jutsu. For Hinata, it was more stamina training and some taijutsu training. Obito-sensei was surprisingly informed in the Hyuuga Gentle Fist fighting style. Hinata assumed that he must have fought alongside or against a Hyuuga before. Obito had actually shown her some of her own clan's more advanced strikes, even though he couldn't use them to any great effect. He knew how the Eight Trigrams abilities worked, but his Sharingan couldn't see what the Byakugan could see.

Hinata sighed, "I how far Naruto has gotten by now?"

"What was that Hinata?" Tazuna asked.

Hinata stiffened and blushed. She hadn't meant to say that aloud. "Umm… N-nothing Tazuna-san, I-I was just lost in thought." Tazuna gave her a smile and turned back to his work.

Hinata sat silently waiting for Sakura to come an replace her. Hinata's training was very draining and therefore she had been taking the first shift of guard duty, most nights when they returned to Tazuna's she ate dinner then immediately went to sleep.

"Tazuna." one of the few men working on the bridge called after bridge builder.

"What is it, Giichi?" Tazuna replied.

"Well, I've been doing some thinking," Giichi said, "and I want to know if it's alright if I quit?"

"Not you too. Why?" Tazuna asked.

"I want to help, I really do, but Gatou is surely going to notice if we keep going and kill us all." Giichi explained, "Why don't we quit now while we are alive."

"I can't do that. This is our bridge, we started it hoping to bring an end to what is happening…" Tazuna said.

"But, Tazuna…" Giichi started.

"It's noon, how about we call it for the morning and get some lunch." Tazuna interrupted, "Giichi, you may go home if you want."

Giichi left as Hinata and Tazuna descended into the small town to get some lunch. Hinata was saddened by the state of the village. Homeless littered the street, kids and adults alike were out begging for any money the passer-by could spare, even food and other basic necessities were outrageously priced. Hinata wasn't sure if even the Hyuga clan, with their substantial funds, could live comfortably in a town like this. Hinata walked along with Tazuna until they came up to a small open air café, even though calling it a café was giving the establishment more credit than it was due. Hinata and Tazuna enjoyed a small lunch that would have cost them at least half as much back in Konoha or any of the other towns in the Land of Fire. Hinata was enjoying a small cup of chai, when she heard footsteps from behind her.

"What's up, Hinata-chan?" Naruto boomed as he sat down beside her.

"N-naruto," Hinata also saw Obito, Sasuke, and Sakura were with him. "What are you all doing here?"

"Naruto and Sasuke finally finished the tree climbing training." Obito said proudly, "So I thought we'd take a small break before returning to training."

"C-congratulations, Naruto, Sasuke." Hinata said.

Sasuke just humphed and turned away. Naruto grinned at her, "Thanks, Hinata-chan." Then he leaned in closer and whispered in her ear, "Don't worry about Sasuke, he just ticked because I beat him to the top of the trees, thanks to your and Sakura's help."

Hinata blushed, she had managed to help Naruto. She had never managed to help anyone, ever. All she ever did was get in the way. She couldn't believe she had actually helped someone, especially her crush. "Y-y-you're w-welcome, N-naruto-kun." She said back. The realization of what she had just said hit her. She had never said his name with the affectionate before, at least not that anyone else could hear. Sakura and Obito looked at her with grins on their faces, and Tazuna looked mildly amused as well. Sasuke was still acting all high and mighty and didn't really care. Naruto, she noticed, didn't change a bit.

"Hey, Hinata-chan, what are you drinking? It smells really good." Naruto asked.

Hinata was still flustered about her slip of the tongue, even though Naruto didn't seem to notice. She could barely speak. Luckily, Obito saved her the trouble, "It's called chai, Naruto. A type of tea popular in the western regions, it's just started catching on here and back in Konoha."

"Oh." Naruto dashed to the counter. "One cup of chai, please." The woman working at the counter nodded and began pouring Naruto a cup of the brown liquid. Naruto paid the woman and returned to his seat beside Hinata. He quickly took a gulp of his drink, and immediately regretted it.

"Oww. Hot! Hot! Hot!" Naruto said as he tried to cool his burning tongue.

Hinata had to stifle a giggle. "I-It's better if you sip it Naruto-kun."

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The next few days passed slightly different than the previous ones. Obito had again split the team into pairs and was training one pair while the other guarded Tazuna. Sasuke and Sakura were paired together, so Sasuke could learn how to recognize and repel genjutsu while giving Sakura a chance to improve her genjutsu skills. Naruto and Hinata so Hinata could continue to help Naruto with his chakra control and he had enough stamina to keep pushing her to increase her own. Obito was pleased with the teams progression, both Sasuke and Naruto had gained enough control that they could use their best jutsus for at least twice as long as they used to. Sakura now had an impressive list of genjutsu skills, as well as learning most of the basic medical ninjutsu he knew. He would have to take Sakura to Rin, he was sure Sakura could learn a few things from his wife. Hinata's stamina and chakra reserves were still improving at an amazing rate, also her abilities in the Jyuuken were also improving, even though it would probably be better if Obito knew more about it than the moves he memorized because of his Sharingan.

However, Obito had the feeling of something heavy coming. He knew it was around time that Zabuza would have regained his strength from the near-death state soon if not already. Obito sighed as Sakura and Sasuke were going through their usual regimen now, Sakura casting all kinds of genjutsu and Sasuke breaking them. Sasuke was also progressing well through the fire techniques Obito was teaching him, he mastered Phoenix Flower easily enough, and was proficient with the Dragon Flame. It was about time that Obito taught him the Dragon Flame Bomb technique.

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Hinata and Naruto were guarding Tazuna as he was on a shopping trip into town to get items needed for dinner that evening. Both of them were rather tired from their training. Hinata more so than Naruto. Hinata wondered where Naruto got his ungodly stamina from, he was never tired for more than an hour or two.

Tazuna went into a small store, where Hinata saw a teenage boy with long dark hair going through some medicinal herbs. Hinata managed to get a look at his face, and he was beautiful. This boy had the most effeminate features she had ever seen on a boy, but it just seemed to fit him.

"Hinata, who's that girl? I've never seen her around before." Naruto asked in a hushed tone.

"N-naruto, that's a boy." Hinata corrected him.

"No way!" Naruto said a little too loudly. He then walked up to the boy and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Yes, can I help you?" the boy asked.

Naruto responded bluntly, "Are you a boy or a girl?"

Hinata couldn't believe what she just heard. She blushed as she chastised Naruto, "Naruto, that's not the sort of question to ask somebody."

Naruto just gave her a sheepish grin as the boy answered, "It's no problem, I'm aware of how I look. I must say it's actually refreshing for someone to be so forthcoming instead of just staring at me trying to figure it out."

"S-still, I'm sorry for my friend's rudeness." Hinata said as she bowed to the boy.

"It's no problem… May I ask your name, miss?" the boy said.

"H-Hinata Hyuga." Hinata answered.

"Haku Kousetsu." Haku replied.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto said with a grin.

"It's a pleasure to meet both of you." Haku said, "What brings ninjas to this place?"

"We're on a mission to protect Tazuna, the bridge builder." Naruto answered without thinking, "What about you, I haven't seen you around the town before."

"My friend and I were just passing through, however he has fallen ill. I'm here getting some medicine to help him get back on his feet." Haku replied.

"I hope he gets well soon, Haku." Hinata said.

"I'm sure he will, Hinata." Haku replied with a smile.

"Hey, Haku, If you got time how about you come join us for dinner or something?" Naruto said.

"Hey, brat, are you inviting people over to my house?" Tazuna asked from the produce he was looking over.

"Ah, sorry, Tazuna-san, I guess I got ahead of myself. But, can he, Tazuna?" Naruto replied.

Tazuna looked at the teenage boy, "Sure, if he wants, I don't see why not."

Haku looked at the three of them, "I'll have to go check on my friend first, but I'd be glad to join you all for dinner." He said with a smile.

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Later that night, Team 7 ate dinner with Tazuna, Tsunami, Inari, and Haku. The meal itself passed in peace. Everyone talked about everything from Haku and what he did, to how Team 7 was progressing, to how the bridge was coming along. Haku learned some interesting info on his opponents, he could see the older jonin, Obito, giving him some odd looks, but other than that no one seemed to notice that they had already met. The peace continued until Sakura looked at a picture on the wall and asked why the man in it had been ripped out of the picture. It was Tsunami's deceased husband who had been a hero in the village. After that bit of conversation Inari stormed out of the room and up to his room. Haku sat in wonderment as Tazuna, the man he was hired to kill, launched into a story about the life of a man named Kaiza, a fisherman who had came to the Land of Waves to start a new life. He had befriended Inari and became a father to the boy and a hero to the village because of his courage. However, Gatou killed him when he stood against Gatou. This had apparently broken the child. Haku was almost beside himself. He would rather kill his employer than this bridge builder, however he remembered that Zabuza, his precious person, his own surrogate father, needed the money from these jobs to help in his dreams, and Haku would do anything to help Zabuza achieve his dreams.

However, Haku couldn't help the feelings he was developing for the Leaf ninjas. He liked them, and in different circumstances they could have been friends, especially him and Hinata. He hoped that he didn't have to kill these people.

Soon, the dinner was over and Haku was saying his goodbyes to his enemies. Haku walked down the path to the hideout he and Zabuza were using, however he was lost in his own thoughts. He desperately wanted to be of use to Zabuza, but he didn't know if he could kill his new friends. He desperately hoped it wouldn't come to having to kill them. In the next few days, everything would come to a head, and Haku didn't know if there was anyway they could all come out of it alive.

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The next day, Team 7 awoke and ate breakfast with Tazuna and his family. Inari looked much happier than Hinata had ever seen him before. The meal was finished in relative silence. Team 7 then departed with Tazuna to finish the bridge. Tazuna had informed them that it was close to being done, no more than a week.

As team 7 got to the bridge, they knew something was wrong. There was a fog in the air, but it was too late in the day for fog. All of them looked around, wary that an attack was imminent.

"Sensei, is this the Hidden Mist Jutsu?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, Sakura, I believe it is." Obito answered

"T-then t-that m-m-means…." Hinata stuttered in fear.

"Yes, Hinata, Zabuza is back." Obito replied.

"Long time no see, Obito." Zabuza said. "I see your still with those wanna-be ninja. Look they are all shaking in fear again."

Obito looked and Zabuza was half right. Sakura and Hinata were trembling in fear, however Sasuke and Naruto seemed to be excited. Suddenly, a dozen Zabuzas dropped down from the sky.

"I'm shaking from excitement!" Sasuke said.

"Time to kick some ass!" was the exclamation from Naruto.

"Sasuke, Naruto, go for it." Obito instructed.

In a flash Sasuke was gone, and several dozen Narutos appeared. The fight was short lived, Sasuke and Naruto each took out half of the clones in multiple splashes of water. Naruto through pure strength of numbers, and Sasuke through pure speed. On the other side of the bridge, Hinata could see a look of mild surprise on Zabuza's face.

"It looks like some rivals have appeared, Haku." Zabuza said.

Hinata's mind almost shut down. Did he say, Haku? He couldn't possibly mean the same Haku that they had met yesterday. That was impossible, they couldn't be fighting that boy, he was so… so… nice.

"It does, Zabuza-san." Haku replied. Hinata was sure now, that was the same voice of the boy they met buying medicines. So his friend was Zabuza.

"Haku! What is this?" Naruto yelled.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but Zabuza-sama is precious to me, his dreams are mine." Haku said, "I don't wish to kill you all, I like you really, but I believe our dreams are at an impasse."

"Damn it." Naruto said.

"I'll fight him." Sasuke said. "I hate bastards like him."

"Like hell, I'm fighting him." Naruto said.

"Tch, you'll only get your ass kicked, loser." Sasuke responded.

"Sasuke, Naruto, now is not the time for these antics." Obito said, "I believe you are going to have to work as a team to defeat Haku. Even with your jumps in ability, I believe he'd be more than a match for either of you one on one. Remember the teamwork you showed against Zabuza the first time, well you're going to have to do that again."

"Fine." both genin said in unison. With this the battle started, both Haku and Sasuke were gone in a flash. Naruto unleashed yet more shadow clones. Haku and Sasuke met roughly in between the rest of Team 7 and Zabuza. Sasuke was wielding a kunai, and Haku had one of his senbon needles. It was a stalemate between them as they each twisted and tried to attack from their engagement. Haku had to disengage when Naruto and his clones finally caught up. Haku managed to disperse a few of the clones with thrown senbon. As the combatants settled back down, everyone was tense for a moment, waiting to see who would make the next move. Haku was the one to make that move throwing a storm of needles with one hand while signing with the other.

"One-handed signs? I've never seen that before." Obito said. Hinata knew why, too. According to their lessons at the academy, signs required two hands, one-handed signs were an impossibility. However, she was watching someone capable of doing the impossible.

"Secret Jutsu: One Thousand Needles of Death" Haku stated as the water around Naruto and Sasuke turned into gigantic ice needles and rushed straight at the pair of genin. Hinata gasped as the needles hit home, but she saw two streaks come out of the carnage. Sasuke and Naruto stood in front of them none the worse for wear, however Naruto's clones weren't as lucky as they all were impaled and dispersed.

"Well, that's interesting." Naruto said.

"Yeah." was the reply from Sasuke. "Naruto, can you back me up here?"

"Yeah, sure. What's the plan?"

"I think I might be faster than him, I want to test that theory, I want you there in case something goes wrong."

Naruto sighed, "Fine, but I'm not going to like it."

Sasuke disappeared from Hinata's vision in a blur, and was letting into Haku with a vengeance. Naruto had conjured up yet more clones and took up positions around the fight, in case Haku did something fishy. The exchange was a lot like the first time Haku and Sasuke had engaged, but this time Sasuke managed to maneuver Haku into ducking into a kick. Hinata could see a small amount of blood come out from behind Haku's mask, and gasped. She knew Haku was the enemy, but she still liked him.

"It seems I have the advantage in speed." Sasuke said as Haku finished his tumble.

"Haku, you do realize we'll be driven back at this rate?" Zabuza asked as Haku returned to his feet.

"Yeah, we can't have that." Haku responded. There was a chill in the air, and you could almost feel the chakra rolling off of Haku. Something bad was going to happen. Haku placed his hands in an odd sign that Hinata didn't recognize.

"Secret Jutsu: Crystal Ice Mirrors." Haku said, as mirrors of ice rose up out from the water on the ground and surrounded Sasuke and all the Narutos. Haku then stepped into the mirror closest to him.

"Damn, this isn't good." Obito said as he made to go help Sasuke and Naruto. Suddenly, Zabuza appeared in front of Obito.

"You're opponent is me, Uchiha." Zabuza stated simply, "Those two will die to that jutsu."

Obito and Zabuza simply stared at each other. Hinata turned her attention back to the dome of mirrors, she could barely see inside of it.

"I'll show you what speed really means." Hinata could hear Haku say, then immediately she heard the screams of Sasuke and Naruto. Something bad was happening in there.

"Sasuke-kun." Sakura said worriedly. Hinata looked at her friend and could tell that Sakura desperately wanted to help Sasuke.

"Sakura," Obito said, "I know you want to help Sasuke, but I need you to keep Tazuna-san safe. I think you know what to do."

"Hai, sensei." Sakura shook herself out of her reverie, flashed a few quick signs, "Inverted Vision Jutsu." Sakura and Tazuna both began to wave and fade, until neither could be seen.

"Hmm… impressive trick you taught her, Obito." Zabuza said with a smirk. "That gives me an idea." Zabuza formed signs Hinata was familiar with, "Ninpou: Hidden Mist Jutsu."

Hinata was astounded, the fog was much thicker than she remembered. He was compounding the jutsu in some way. She made the familiar sign, "Byakugan."

Hinata could now see Sakura, and she could see Zabuza and Obito squaring off. However, the thing that worried her most was that she could not see into the ice dome. The whole structured was covered in chakra and was almost blinding to look at. She worried about Naruto, and what might be happening to him. The screams had stopped, she hoped that Naruto was still alive.

"Sharingan again, is that all you can do?" Hinata heard Zabuza's jest.

"You may say that, but you are afraid of it, aren't you." Obito answered.

"Let's see how well you can copy me, when you can't see me." Zabuza replied.

"Damn it. Where is he?" Obito said.

"S-sensei, shuriken to the right." Hinata said. Obito turned just in time to block all of the shuriken coming at him.

"Damn you, girl." Zabuza said. "I'm going to have to deal with you first."

Hinata gasped as Zabuza appeared before her, his gigantic sword raised for a killing blow.

"Katon: Dragon Flame Bombs." Hinata heard Obito's voice as she saw a stream of fireballs drive Zabuza away from her. Soon after Obito was in front of her.

"Hinata, I need you to be my eyes." Obito said simply. "My Sharingan can't see through this fog, but your Byakugan can. Zabuza is a master at killing in darkness, using only sound to find his enemies. I'm at an extreme disadvantage here, I need you to help me, you think you can do it?"

"Hai, Obito-sensei." Hinata said. She wasn't sure if she actually could help him, but she had to do something. Everyone else was trying so hard, she could not sit by and do nothing, she had to try.

"Good, for now, our plan is going to be to let him come to us, for now. I'll protect us, you just focus on keeping your eyes on him." Obito replied.

"Left" Obito turned to the left and blocked more kunai.

"Behind" Obito turned again and blocked a sword strike.

"Above" Obito grabbed Hinata and moved out of the way of the overhead slash.

"Very good, Hinata." Obito reassured Hinata.

"T-thank you sens…" Hinata never got to finish her thanks.

"SASUKE!!" The scream was Naruto's,

Hinata was frozen, something was overpowering the chakra dome. This chakra she could see and feel was different, tainted, in some way. It felt and looked very similar to Naruto's normal chakra, but something more was behind it. Then she saw it, the chakra took a form, it was the face of a fox. Hinata stared in amazement, this sort of power was unimaginable. Suddenly, Hinata remembered what she was supposed to be doing.

"Sensei, Zabuza is standing still about 6 meters to our back right." Hinata said.

"Time to go on the offensive then." Obito replied.

Obito took off towards Zabuza, "Yari Daikage." Suddenly a large rod of pure fire was in Obito's hands. Zabuza managed to snap out of it before he took a major blow. Obito and Zabuza exchanged blows for a little while. Obito managed to stay on top of Zabuza and wasn't going to let him get away.

Hinata was shocked when she saw Haku come crashing through one of his ice mirrors, as he did the whole jutsu began to fall, and Hinata could see what was going on. Sasuke was still, his chakra flow was low, dangerously so, he could possibly be dying. Naruto was launching a devastating series of blows against the rogue ninja. Eventually, Naruto cracked Haku's mask and as Naruto got a good look at Haku's face as he was about to punch it. Then, as suddenly as the great and terrible chakra came, it left. Naruto was just standing there fist inches away from Haku's face.

"Why did you stop?" Haku said, his voice far, distant, "I killed your precious friend, yet you can't kill me?"

"Damn it." Naruto shouted as he finished his punch, but it didn't have the same power as before.

"What happened to your intensity? You can't kill me with that." Haku said as he wiped blood from his mouth, "There are people who make this mistake, not killing your enemy because of pity, letting them leave with their lives. Can you understand not having a dream, not being needed by anyone, the pain of simply living?"

"What are you saying?" Naruto asked.

"Zabuza has no need for weak shinobi. You have taken away my reason for living." Haku replied simply.

"Why?" Naruto shouted, "Why for a guy like that? Is he the only person important to you?"

"I used to… my parents. They were nice people, and I was happy in the small snowy village we lived in. But, as I grew older, I found out about my kekkei genkai…" Haku replied sadly.

"What happened?" Naruto prodded.

"Once my father figured out that I had one of the feared bloodline traits, he killed my mother then tried to kill me. I ended up killing my own father. My own father!" Haku continued, "After that I realized the most painful thing, that in this world, I was a person who was unwanted."

Hinata could sympathize with the boy. She often felt like she was unwanted in her clan, particularly by the main branch members. However, she knew that Naruto was the closest to Haku now, almost everyone in the village wanted Naruto gone or dead.

Haku continued, "You said you wanted to become the best village in your village at dinner, remember? You want to make everyone recognize you. Now, what if someone who acknowledged you showed up, wouldn't he be the most important person to you? Zabuza-san took me in, he desired this power, even when everyone else detested me and spurned me for it. I was so happy." Hinata could see tears start to stream from Haku's eyes.

"Naruto-kun, please kill me." Haku said with defeat in his voice.

"I don't understand. Is being strong the only reason you live?" Naruto pleaded. "You could be recognized for something other than fighting?

"When I met you, Naruto, I thought you were like me. You should be able to understand." Haku responded. "I'm sorry you'll have to stain your hands."

"Is this the only way?" Naruto asked.

"Yes." Haku answered. "Please fulfill your own dreams.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered to herself

"Sasuke also had a dream." Naruto said as he looked at the downed Uchiha and drew a kunai, "If we had met under different circumstances Haku, we could have been friends." Naruto then charged at Haku kunai at the ready.

"Thank you Naruto-kun…" Haku said, embracing his fate.

Hinata had also taken off at a run towards the two, she had to stop Naruto. This wasn't right, things shouldn't end like this. As she ran towards Haku, she saw that Obito had leveraged himself into a killing stroke. Hinata also saw Haku charging up some chakra for some reason. She had to protect Naruto, he was running headlong into something. Before she could even think of what she was doing, she saw the green inscription emanating from her feet. A symbol only she could see.

"Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms." Hinata said as she started one of her clans ultimate jutsu. Time seemed to slow.

Two Palms, two strikes to the chest.

Four Palms, four strikes to the shoulders.

Eight Palms, eight strikes to the lower abdomen

Sixteen Palms, sixteen strikes to the arms.

Thirty-two Palms, thirty-two strikes to the legs

Sixty-four Palms, sixty-four strikes to the head, neck, and back.

Haku collapsed, whatever jutsu he was starting was stopped as Hinata shut off almost all of Haku's tenketsu points. She was amazed at herself, she shouldn't be anywhere near using that technique. She looked at Naruto, who had stopped in amazement, she could see them, tenketsu points. She had never been able to see them before. She looked back to where Obito was fighting Zabuza to see that Obito had impaled Zabuza in the heart and the body had caught flame.

"No… why…" Haku said, he was crying, "I'm alone again…"

"Humph, I should have known better than to hire weak ninja. But it's okay, I never planned on paying them anything." a small man in a suit said. He had a small army of hired henchmen behind him.

Obito jumped back to Hinata, Haku, and Naruto. Hinata could see that Sakura and Tazuna had moved over to wear Sasuke's body laid, Sakura was crying.

"Weak and pathetic was all that the great Zabuza, demon of the Mist Village, was." Gatou said as he kicked Zabuza's dead body.

"Zabuza-san was a greater man than you could ever dream to be." Haku was standing. Hinata couldn't believe it, he was somehow forcing his tenketsu points open. "I will kill you, if not for you, Zabuza would still be alive."

"Ah ah ah." Gatou said smugly, "I don't think you'll want to do that." Two of Gatou's henchmen brought a young woman and boy that everyone recognized as Tsunami and Inari.

"You dirty bastard!" Naruto yelled.

"You hand over Tazuna-san to me, and I'll let her and the boy go." Gatou said.

Hinata watched as an ice mirror appeared behind Haku and the men holding Inari and Tsunami. Suddenly, Haku was with the other mirror, and had killed both of the guards with their own swords. He grabbed Tsunami and Inari and transported them back the way he came.

"Gatou, you're the reason my precious one is dead. I'll send you straight to hell!" Haku made a series of complicated signs, "Secret Jutsu: Crystal Ice Menagerie."

If Hinata thought the original dome was impressive, this new one made the other one look like a child's toy. The dome encompassed Gatou and all his men. Also, pieces of the dome were moving, the walls were moving counter-clockwise while the ceiling was rotating in a clockwise direction. Soon, all Hinata heard were screams as all the men in the dome dropped. Soon, The dome came apart, and the only two people standing were Gatou and Haku.

"This is your end, you greedy, evil excuse for a man." Haku said as he rand Gatou through the dozens of senbon. Haku then took one of the dead henchmen's swords and ran Gatou through multiple times, ending in a decapitation. Soon after he was done, Haku passed out, Hinata could tell that he was dangerously low on chakra.

"Sasuke!" Sakura's voice called out. Hinata turned to see that Sasuke had stirred.

"That hurts Sakura…" Sasuke said weakly.

"Sorry." Sakura said.

"What about Naruto, and where's Haku?"

"Naruto is okay, and Haku is passed out."

"Did Naruto beat him?" Sasuke asked, disbelief evident in his voice.

"No, Haku passed out after killing Gatou and his goons." Sakura replied.

"I see…"

"Naruto!" Sakura yelled, "He's alright, Sasuke-kun is alive."

Hinata watched as Naruto spun around, a look of relief in his eyes.

"Whew looks like this is finally over." Obito said, as he strode over to Haku's limp form. After reaching Haku, Obito bent down and went through a few signs, "Illusion of the Emerald Dream" he incanted as he touched Haku's forehead.

"W-what did you do, sensei?" Hinata asked.

"I placed him in a sleep genjutsu. While it's a powerful one, it can only be used on someone who is already unconscious. He'll only wake up after I release the technique." Obito explained.

Team 7 got themselves together, and escorted Tazuna, Tsunami, and Inari back to their house.

"How you holding up, Inari?" Naruto asked.

"Better since you talked to me, Naruto." Inari answered, "I'm not going to cry anymore, my father was a brave man, and I will follow in his footsteps."

Hinata smiled, Naruto always seemed to help anyone he came in contact with. The trip back to Tazuna's home went by uneventfully, thankfully.

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The second week Team 7 spent in the Land of Waves was almost boring compared to the first one. However, no one was complaining, it took days for Sasuke to get over his injuries, and everyone else needed at least a day to recharge and cope with what happened. Haku was left under Obito's genjutsu, and was to remain that way until they got him back to Konoha. Obito was sure that the Hokage would want a chance to entice the young rogue-nin into joining Konoha, a place where he would be treated better. Not to mention it could give Konoha a new powerful kekkei genkai. On the last day, everyone said their goodbyes and Team 7 left via the newly completed bridge to Konoha. Everyone was in high spirits, they had just completed an A-rank mission, and were sure that things could only get easier from here.

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A/N

Wow, I wasn't expecting such a strong reaction to the affinities from last chapter. I feel an explanation is in order.

Sasuke: Strictly Canon Fire/Lightning

Naruto: Canon as Wind, his spastic personality screams Lightning to me.

Hinata: I had to give her Earth, not because of her but because of the clan, the Hyuuga clan is very strict and structured, seems very Earth to me, and just like every Uchiha had Fire affinity, every Hyuga will have Earth affinity. Wind seemed like a good follow up for her, I think she has a very wind-ish personality, maybe water would've been a better fit. Still Wind felt better at the time.

Sakura: This has strictly to do with her abilities. Simply, Genjutsu feels windy and healing feels like a water based ability, I can't really explain it, but that's the elements I thought of when I thought about Sakura's abilities.

Also, I apologize for making it seem that ninjas could only master two elements. I will say that with enough training, a ninja can master all of the elements, it's just that their affinities make it easier to learn and master jutsu associated with that affinity. Sorry for the confusion.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy.


	4. Chapter 4 Decisions

Four Man Squads

Chapter 4 - Decisions

Obito was carrying the unconscious form Haku as Team 7 entered the gates of Konoha. It felt great to be home, Obito was sure Rin was probably worried sick about him. However, they had to report in to the Hokage first.

"Come on, we have to report in." Obito instructed his team. Naruto had went off towards the direction of Ichiraku's, however he'd have to wait.

"Come on, sensei. I haven't got to eat any good ramen in two weeks." Naruto complained.

"Mission first, Naruto. Then you can go eat." Obito replied.

"Fine, jeez…" Naruto said as he continued to Ninja Ops.

A few minutes later, Team 7 was standing in front of the Third Hokage with an unconscious Haku laying at their feet.

"Obito, who's the boy?" Sarutobi asked.

"It's a long story, but in short he's an enemy ninja that we captured. As far as I can tell, he's from Kiri. However, he's not affiliated with them in any way, I believe he was taken out of Kiri before he ever entered their academy." Obito explained.

"I see, and I guess you were thinking we could offer him a place in Konoha?" Sarutobi asked in response.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Obito answered.

"Well wake him up, and we'll see what we can do." the Hokage instructed.

Obito bent down to Haku's body, "Release." Obito said as he tapped Haku on the forehead.

Haku slowly stirred, "Where am I? Last thing I remember was… Zabuza-san!" Haku sat up quickly.

"Careful now, you really shouldn't be moving like that." Obito warned Haku, "You're still pretty weak from the genjutsu. Also, you're in Konoha, to answer your first question."

"You killed Zabuza-san, my precious person." Haku said, anger coming into his voice. "I will kill you."

"I'm sorry, Haku. I had no choice, he was trying to kill my team." Obito replied. "Any of us would have done the same."

Haku didn't seem to hear him, "And you! You stopped me from saving Zabuza-san. Why? Why did you stop me?" he shouted as he rounded on Hinata. Hinata didn't look at him, and shyly backed away.

"Why are you getting angry at us?!" Naruto shouted back, "You're the ones that were working for that bastard Gatou!"

Haku didn't say anything in response, he just seemed to break down, "I'm alone again, no body wants me…"

"W-w-we want you, Haku-san." Hinata stammered.

"Hinata is correct," the Hokage chimed in, "Konoha would be glad to have you if you want to stay with us."

"Yeah," Naruto said happily, "You're pretty cool, those ice mirrors were amazing, you need to show me how to do that."

"Really?" Haku said, "You guys want me here, even knowing what I could do, even though I hurt you?"

"Yes," Obito said, "While you tried to hurt us, you deliberately tried not to kill us, and besides, we couldn't just leave you there."

"But, I'm a rogue ninja." Haku replied.

"This is true, but did you ever enter the academy at Kirigakure?" Sarutobi asked.

"No, but…" Haku answered.

"Then while you might be a rogue ninja, you aren't a missing-nin since you never belonged to a village anyway, so there's nothing anyone can say about us taking you in." Sarutobi explained, "However, you must know, that you will be under watch at almost all times until you prove that you are trustworthy, if you accept to stay. If you don't want to stay, then I'm going to have to ask you to leave Konoha immediately."

Haku looked around for a moment taking in the looks of the people he used to call enemies, but he wanted to call friends. Naruto was grinning at him. Hinata was also smiling. Sakura too looked on with approval. Sasuke looked interested, though he didn't really seem to have a preference. Obito nodded approvingly at Haku. "I think that I would like it here, I'll stay." Haku eventually said.

The Hokage smiled as he responded, "Good, well then, while you are on probation for the next 6 months, I will be assigning you to a team and instating you as a genin of Konoha. Sadly, one of our genin teams suffered a casualty on their latest mission, the boy that got hurt decided that he didn't want to continue as a shinobi, so that opens up a slot for you. I'll let Might Guy know that you have been assigned to his team, you'll be meeting him tomorrow, a messenger will come by with the details. If you'll wait outside, I'll have someone come by and set you up with an apartment and an advance on your salary so you can buy furnishings, food, and whatever else you may need."

Haku nodded, "Thank you Hokage-sama." Haku then left the room.

"Well, now that that's out of the way. What happened? That was supposed to be a C-rank mission, but you captured 3 rogue nins, and from Haku's reaction killed one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist." Sarutobi asked.

Obito then launched into an explanation of everything that had happened over the last couple of weeks. His explanation included the fight with the Demon Brothers, the first fight with Zabuza at the lake, the tree-climbing training, then the final battle at the bridge. The Third simply sat and listened intently to the mission debrief.

"I must commend you for a job well done. While it will go down in the books as a C-rank mission, you all have just completed an A-rank mission as genin. I'm very impressed with your progress. If that's all you all may go, considering all you have been through I'm giving you all a few weeks off. The secretary at the front will give you your pay for the mission and the bounties on the Demon Brothers and Zabuza." Sarutobi dismissed them.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." Obito said, then all of team 7 gave a small bow as they exited the debriefing room.

-------------------------------------------

"So, how about we go to Ichiraku's to celebrate?" Naruto asked as they left the Ninja Ops building.

"Sounds good to me." Obito said. Obito would have actually preferred to go somewhere else, but he knew Naruto loved the little ramen stand and it had been awhile since they were in Konoha. "What about the rest of you?"

"Sure, I'll go." Sakura replied. Hinata nodded her head in agreement. Sasuke didn't say anything, but followed them anyway.

After they had walked for a few minutes, Naruto dropped back to a position beside Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke."

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked in a slightly annoyed voice.

"Umm… Back on the bridge, when Haku had us trapped in those ice mirrors. Why did you save me?" Naruto asked, "You know, we've never really gotten along, I thought you hated me."

"I don't know, idiot. My body just kind of moved on its own." Sasuke replied, "However, what happened after I passed out. How did you get out of there?"

"I don't know either…" Naruto answered, "I thought you had died, that's what it looked like. I got really angry, and then everything just went red. Next thing I know, I'm standing in front of Haku and he's pleading for me to kill him."

Sasuke and Naruto walked on in silence for a little while, neither one of them really comprehending what was happening between them. Were they becoming friends?

Naruto was the first one to break the silence, "So, how's the Sharingan?"

"Hmm… it's interesting." Sasuke replied. "It's like I can see things before they happen."

"That sounds really cool." Naruto said, "I wish I had the Sharingan." Sasuke just smirked.

A few moments later Team 7 had reached the ramen stand. The proprietor and his daughter greeted their best customer and his team warmly and asked what they wanted. Naruto ordered a multitude of bowls of every flavor. Sakura and Hinata both enjoyed some miso ramen, while Obito and Sasuke ordered some pork ramen.

While they ate, Naruto struck up some conversation, "So, Hinata, what was that awesome technique you used on Haku?"

"I-it's called the Eight T-trigrams Sixty-four P-palms." Hinata answered.

"You moved so fast, I couldn't even tell what you were doing." Naruto smiled at her.

"Yes, Hinata, it was a very impressive technique for you to unleash in the middle of a battle." Obito affirmed.

"T-thank you, N-Naruto-kun, Obito-sensei." Hinata replied shyly.

"Frankly, I'm impressed with the improvement all of you have shown." Obito complimented his team. "Sasuke, awakening the Sharingan in a fight like that is impressive. Sakura, your mastery of genjutsu continues to amaze me, and you picked up on those medical jutsus very easily as well. Naruto, you are getting better with your Shadow Clones, and you showed an ability for strategic thinking in that first fight against Zabuza."

"Thanks, Obito-sensei." all three of the genin responded almost in unison.

Team 7 enjoyed the rest of their meal, talking about what their plans were for their for the next few weeks they have off. Obito informed them that while they weren't going to be having any missions, he was still expecting them to show up for training as per their usual schedule. Everybody nodded in acknowledgement, and soon parted ways as they finished their meal.

---------------------------------

Hinata Hyuga was as happy as she could ever remember being. First off, Naruto had recognized her as a powerful ninja, not a failure like her clan did. Then, Obito had said the same thing, and she could tell that her teammates looked at her as a friend and equal. She was saddened slightly to be returning to her home. She could see the gates, and the branch family members guarding them.

"Hinata-sama, Hiashi-sama wishes to talk with you immediately." one of the guards informed her as she approached.

"Thank you, I'll go to meet him now then." Hinata responded. Her happiness was to be short lived it seemed. Hinata made her way up to her father's study and knocked on the door.

"Come in." Hiashi's voice commanded. Hinata opened the door and entered the room, she looked at her father holding a paper in his hand, scouring over it.

"Hinata, I have here a the initial report from your last mission. From what is said here you played a key role against one Zabuza Momochi, and then during the course of the battle unleashed the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms. I figured I'd give you a chance to explain this, as I find it highly unlikely that you used such an advanced technique when your basic forms are so terrible." Hiashi said as his daughter entered the room.

"I-in respect to the role I played against Zabuza Momochi, I acted as Obito-sensei's eyes. Momochi used a jutsu which obscures everyone's vision with mist. However, the jutsu has no effect over the Byakugan, therefore I assisted Obito-sensei by telling him where Zabuza would be attacking from." Hinata stated.

Hiashi nodded, "Very good, Hinata." Hinata nearly fell, did her father just _compliment_ her. Her amazement was short lived. "However, the more pressing matter here is you using the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms, I trust that the Hokage would not send me a false report."

"H-hai, father," Hinata replied, "I don't know exactly what happened. There was another rogue ninja with Zabuza, a teenager by the name of Haku. Naruto had managed to defeat the boy, however I noticed with the Byakugan that Haku was building up chakra for a jutsu while Naruto was charging in for the death blow. I reacted on instinct, and somehow used the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms. H-honestly, f-father, I don't think I c-could use it again if I t-tried, I c-can't remember anything about the t-technique."

"Hmm… I see." Hiashi answered, "It's not unheard of, for someone to use the ability in a stressful situation. While I'm impressed you used such a strong ability, I'm disappointed that you cannot recall anything of it. Hinata, you may unpack, however I wish for you to meet me in the training grounds in two hours. We'll see if we can break through this block in your ability."

"H-hai, father." Hinata replied as she left the room. She slumped up against the wall, he was _impressed_! He had never said anything like that to her ever. This day couldn't be any better so far, however know she was fretting over the training session to be held in a couple of hours. She couldn't fail now, she was now starting to earn her father's respect.

------------------------

Naruto was the first to arrive at Team 7's usual meeting place the next morning, even though he was 30 minutes late. Team 7 had started getting used to their sensei's constant tardiness. Naruto sat down on a bench and watched some kids playing on a jungle gym not too far away. It must be fun, having friends to play with at that age. Naruto wished he had friends that he could have played with at that age.

"N-naruto-kun?" Hinata's voice broke through Naruto's daze.

"Huh? Hinata-chan, what's up?" Naruto said, a grin returning to his face. He was so lost in thought that he didn't even hear her coming up the pathway.

"N-nothing, you looked l-like something was t-troubling you." Hinata said in reply.

"Eh, yeah I guess." Naruto answered, "Just thinking about how things were before I was on Team 7."

"Oh." Hinata murmured. She was saddened to learn of what was causing her crush's mood. Maybe if she wasn't so weak and shy, she could've been his friend and he wouldn't have had to suffer like that.

"It's all in the past though, I have friends now. Sakura, Sasuke, and you." Naruto said happily, "and, Obito-sensei is kinda like a big brother."

"Well, that's sweet of you to think of me like that, Naruto." Obito said. Naruto and Hinata gasped, they never heard their jonin instructor sneak up on them.

"How long have you been listening, sensei?" Naruto asked.

"I heard the whole thing." Obito replied. Naruto blushed, a rare thing, since his sensei figured out that Naruto regarded him as a big brother.

As Obito was joking around with his "little brother", Sakura and Sasuke showed up to the meeting point.

"Good, now that you are all here, I'll fill you in on the next stage of your careers as ninjas." Obito said.

"Next stage? You mean the Chuunin Exams." Sakura replied.

"That is correct, Sakura. You all showed good teamwork and individual skill against Haku and Zabuza. Therefore, I'm giving my recommendation for you all to take the Chuunin Exams in one month.

"Awesome! We are so gonna rock the exams, no one will know what hit them." Naruto yelled. Sasuke nodded in agreement.

"I'm glad you're excited about it. However, even though I'm recommending you all for the exams, it doesn't mean you have to take it. If you feel that you are not ready you may decline the invitation." Obito explained.

"Pfft, who would pass on this kinda opportunity?" Naruto asked rhetorically. Obito watched as Hinata looked down at the ground.

"Just remember this, the fact that I'm putting my recommendation in for you to take the exam means that I am confident in every single one of you as individuals, as well as a team." Obito explained. Hinata perked up a little, she knew who that comment was for.

"So, we have time off until the exam?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes, I'll be training all of you extensively. Sasuke, we'll continue fire jutsu. Sakura, I'm going to get you to train with my wife so she can teach you some more medical jutsu. Naruto, I think it's time for you to start learning some wind jutsu, and Hinata I'll be training you in earth jutsu." Obito replied, "However, I know we are all still tired from the Wave mission, so I'm giving you all the day off to help recuperate. We start training tomorrow, bright and early. Also, make sure you're here on time, Rin doesn't like it when people are late."

"Then how'd she end up marrying someone like you?" Naruto asked no one in particular.

"NARUTO!" Sakura yelled as she punched him in the back of the head, "That's very rude."

Obito smiled, "You know what they say, opposites attract." He then gave a very knowing look between Naruto and Hinata then walked away, "I'll see you all at nine tomorrow, enjoy the rest of your day."

Soon after Obito left, Sasuke left as well. As usual, Sakura was on his heels trying to convince him to go on a date or walk with her or just to do something with her. Sasuke, as usual, ignored her. This left Naruto and Hinata sitting alone on a bench in the park.

"Well, want to go get something to eat, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked innocently.

Hinata felt the blood rush to her face, "I-I w-would l-like that, N-naruto-kun."

Oblivious to his teammates emotional stresses, Naruto grabbed Hinata's hand and took off towards Ichiraku Ramen. It took every fiber of Hinata's being not to faint on the spot.

After leading her by the hand for a few minutes, Naruto finally released his grip on Hinata. They walked at a leisurely pace through the streets of Konoha. Eventually, they saw a familiar stream of long black hair along with a purple kimono.

"Hey, Haku!" Naruto shouted. Haku stopped and turned to see his new friends.

"Hello, Naruto, Hinata." Haku smiled at them, "How are you two?"

"We're good." Naruto answered, "How are you?"

"Well, I'm not used to being around this many people." Haku replied, "Zabuza-san and I usually kept to ourselves, but everyone here is so nice, it's a lot different than it was in Kiri."

"T-that's n-nice to hear, Haku." Hinata said.

"Hey, we were just going to get something to eat. Wanna join us?" Naruto offered.

"I would love to, Naruto. It'll have to be quick though, I have to meet Guy-sensei and his team in a couple of hours and I still have to buy some groceries and other things for my new apartment." Haku accepted.

Naruto, Hinata, and Haku strolled along for a few more minutes until they came to the familiar ramen stand. Naruto entered and sat in his usual spot, Hinata sat to his left and Haku to his right.

"Well, if it isn't our favorite customer, oh and he's brought another new face in. I'm Teuchi, the proprietor of Ichiraku Ramen, and this is my daughter Ayame." Teuchi said as he gestured to his daughter.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Haku." Haku replied.

"Nice to meet you, as well." Ayame replied, "May I take your orders?"

The three genin nodded and gave Ayame their orders. Then they talked among themselves while their meals cooked.

"So, what do you know about your new sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Well, from what I've heard, Might Guy is a taijutsu master, and has a very odd personality." Haku replied, "I tried to figure out more, but everyone just told me I'd figure it out when I met him. Something to do with the 'flames of youth', whatever that means."

Hinata blushed, she had met Might Guy only twice since he had become Neji's sensei. However, just from those two meetings she knew "odd" was an understatement. "I-I'm sure y-you'll be alright, Haku-san." she said.

"I'm certain you are right, Hinata." Haku replied.

"Here you are." Ayame said as she brought their meals over. The three genin quickly dove in to their meals, Naruto making a show of it, while Haku and Hinata ate in a more dignified and mannerly way. The next few minutes went by in relative silence as they enjoyed their meals.

"Now, I have a question to ask, Haku." Naruto said.

"What is it?" Haku replied.

"You know that thing you did with the ice mirrors? Can you teach that to me?" Naruto asked.

"Ha ha. I'm sorry Naruto, but I can't." Haku answered.

"Why not?" Naruto pouted.

"Because it's impossible for you to learn. It's a kekkei genkai ability, the only reason I can do it is because it's in my blood." Haku answered, "Just like your friend Sasuke's Sharingan."

"Oh, that sucks." Naruto said slightly downtrodden, "That's alright though, I can still get Hinata to teach me that cool move of hers. That Eight Trigrams thingy."

"N-naruto-kun." Hinata sheepishly replied, "That's part of my kekkei genkai."

"Oh, damn it." Naruto replied.

Haku and Hinata shared a laugh, "Don't worry Naruto, I'm sure you'll find some powerful jutsus of your own." Haku reassured, "Well, I got to be going, things to do and people to meet. Thanks for inviting me to lunch. Goodbye Hinata, Naruto."

"Later, Haku." Naruto said as he waved.

"Goodbye, Haku-san" Hinata said as she bowed.

"Wow, he is cute." Ayame said from behind the counter.

"Huh, yeah I guess. When I first met him, I thought he was a girl." Naruto replied. Hinata giggled as she remembered the first meeting she and Naruto had with the former rogue ninja.

"Anyway, thanks for the meal." Naruto said as he laid his money on the counter, "I'll be back soon." Hinata graciously paid for her meal as well, as the two left the ramen stand.

"So, you can't teach me the Eight Trigrams?" Naruto asked as he and Hinata walked down the street.

"No, N-Naruto-kun," Hinata replied, "It's t-tied to my Byakugan, and I d-don't even remember h-how to do it." Her mind flashed back to last night's training session where her father tried to force her to use the ability again, much to his dismay, she couldn't perform the skill again.

"Well, that stinks. We'll have to try and get you to remember what you did, cause that move was amazing." Naruto answered. "What does it do, exactly."

"W-well, with my Byakugan I can see a person's tenketsu…" Hinata began.

"What?" Naruto asked.

"Tenketsu are little openings where people release chakra, with my chakra I can shut those points down, making to where my opponent can't use their jutsu, or I can increase the flow through the points, allowing me or a teammate to use more chakra than normal." Hinata explained, "The Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms shuts down roughly half of the tenketsu of the target, rendering them almost incapable of using their chakra. There's a more advanced version, the One-hundred-twenty-eight Palms that shuts down all the chakra points."

"Wow, that's amazing, and a little scary." Naruto said, "Remind me never to get into a fight with you."

"N-Naruto-kun." Hinata said under her breath.

"It was nice hanging out with you, Hinata-chan. Maybe we could do it again." Naruto said as they were getting ready to part ways.

Hinata froze, did he just ask her out on a date? She couldn't handle it anymore, first the hand-holding, then he asked her out on a date, her mind went into overload, and the last thing she remembered seeing was the look of concern crossing her crush's face.

"Hinata-chan? Hinata-chan!" Naruto shouted as he caught Hinata's limp body, "What in the world was that about."

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The next few weeks passed quickly for Team 7 as they prepared themselves for the Chuunin Exams. Obito continued to teach Sasuke their clan's patented fire techniques, the instruction was only quickened by the addition of Sasuke's Sharingan, Sakura had began her specialized training with Rin and was mastering some of the lower to mid level healing jutsus, and Naruto and Hinata were continuing to train together. Hinata, while she hadn't yet rediscovered the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms, was increasing her proficiency in the Jyuuken rapidly, thanks to sparring dozens of Narutos at the same time. Naruto and Hinata had also began learning ninjutsu under Obito. Naruto's repertoire increased to include the Fuuton: Kamisori, a jutsu that released a blade of wind sharper than the keenest sword, and Raiton: Shokkutsuchi, a jutsu that blasts whatever is in front of the user with a bolt of lightning. Hinata also learned the Fuuton: Kamisori along with the Doton: Hibiware, a earth jutsu designed to trap a foe in a ground fissure dozens of feet deep.

There were only a few more days left before the official start of the Chuunin exams. Obito had given Team 7 the day off to recuperate and otherwise mentally prepare themselves for the trials that awaited. Naruto and Hinata had yet again found themselves together again, if Naruto didn't know any better, he could have sworn the rest of his team was trying to set him up with Hinata every chance they got. However, this time around they had ran into Konohamaru and his two friends, Moegi and Udon. Konohamaru had been pestering Naruto about playing hide and seek with them, and finally Naruto agreed, if just to get them out of his hair. Konohamaru had taken off to hide when he ran into a larger boy in a black suit with face paint on, and a large bandage-wrapped bundle on his back. The boy also wore a Suna forehead protector.

"That hurts, you little piece of shit." the boy said as he picked Konohamaru up by his shirt.

"Don't, Kankuro, we'll get yelled at later." a blonde girl with a large fan said behind him. She too wore a Suna forehead protector, but hers was wrapped around her neck like Hinata's.

"Hey, fat ass, let go of him." Naruto yelled at the boy now identified as Kankuro.

"Let's play a little before the boss gets here." Kankuro replied.

"Bastard!" Naruto said as he charged Kankuro. However, Kankuro made some movements with his hands and Naruto tripped and fell to the ground

"What was that?" Naruto said as he got back up.

"Heh, Leaf genin are weak." Kankuro smirked.

"Let go of me." Konohamaru pleaded.

"Let him go, or I'll kick your ass, you idiot." Naruto shouted getting ready to start a second charge.

"Heh, you're annoying." was the answer from Kankuro. "I hate midgets, especially ther younger, rude ones. Makes me want to kill them."

"I'm not involved with this." The other girl from Suna said as she put her hands in the air.

"Well, after this one, I'll take care of that other annoying midget." Kankuro said as he prepared to throw a punch at the defenseless Konohamaru.

"Bastard!" Naruto yelled. It was all he could do, he wasn't going to make it before Kankuro got his bunch in. Suddenly, a rock flew and hit Kankuro in the hand that was holding up Konohamaru, forcing Kankuro to drop the academy student.

"What are you assholes doing in out village?" Sasuke's voice said. Naruto turned to see him sitting on a tree branch tossing another rock into the air.

"Another guy who pisses me off…" Kankuro said as he rubbed his hand.

"Get lost." Sasuke replied simply.

"Get down here punk." Kankuro challenged, "I hate show-offs like you the most." Kankuro took the wrapped bundle off of his back.

"Hey, you're going to use Karasu?" the blonde asked.

"Kankuro, stop it." an unknown voice commanded.

Naruto looked directly below Sasuke to see a redheaded boy about the same age as himself with the kanji for love tattooed on his forehead. "You're an embarrassment to our village." the boy continued.

"Ga-Gaara…" Kankuro started to plea.

"Losing yourself in a fight, how pathetic." Gaara cut him off, "Do you remember why we came to Konoha?"

"Listen, Gaara, they started it and…" Kankuro started.

"Shut up." Gaara interrupted, "or, I'll kill you."

"Okay, I'm sorry…" Kankuro relented.

"I'm also sorry." the blonde girl said.

"Sorry to you all." Gaara said to Sasuke. Then he disappeared in a swirl of sand, just to reappear on the ground next to Kankuro. "It looks like we got here early, we didn't come to play around, let's go."

"Wait a second." Sasuke said as he leaped down from the tree. "What's your name?"

"Gaara of the Desert." Gaara replied, "I'd also like to know yours."

"Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke answered simply.

"Hey, what about me?" Naruto asked enthusiastically.

"Not interested, let's go." Gaara responded as he turned around.

Naruto looked downtrodden as the three Suna-nin disappeared. "Do I look that weak?" he asked no one in particular.

"I-I don't think so, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered reassuringly.

Naruto perked up a little, "Thanks, Hinata-chan. Anyway, what do you think they're here for?"

Sasuke was the one who replied, "Obviously, they're here for the Chuunin Exams, idiot."

"Oh, yeah." Naruto answered while rubbing the back of his head, "Forgot about that."

"Looks like this is going to be an interesting exam." Sasuke said with a smirk on his face.

"Definitely." Naruto replied smiling.

Hinata looked down at the ground. She still wasn't sure if she was ready for the exams. She wished she had Naruto's confidence. She was going to have to come to a decision soon, the exams were only a few days away.

"What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked when he turned to see his teammate staring at the ground.

Hinata looked up to see that Sasuke and the children had already left and it was just her and Naruto. "I-I j-just don't know if I-I'm ready, N-Naruto-kun. Y-you saw those S-Suna genin, they're s-so p-powerful."

Naruto gave her a reassuring smile, "You're ready Hinata, you can take on dozens of my Shadow Clones all at the same time, and I'm sure you're close to a breakthrough on you Eight Trigrams ability. I believe you are ready, Hinata-chan."

"T-thank you, Naruto-kun." Hinata replied as a familiar shade of pink came across her face. She still didn't quite believe she was ready, but the pep talk helped. She and Naruto continued on their way to a small teahouse that Hinata had convinced Naruto to go to. She had finally reached her decision, even if she didn't think she was ready, she was going to try. It's what Naruto would have done.

-------------------------------------------

A/N

Sorry this chapter is shorter than the others, but I wanted a small break chapter between the Wave arc and the Exam arc. Anyway to answer a few questions:

I never stated that Kakashi died in order for Obito to live. Don't forget, there's a fourth member for every team, that includes Team Minato and the Yonnin (Sannin, renamed for the fact there's four of them now). So, it could be that this fourth member of Team Minato is the reason Obito is alive.

Yes, Haku likes Hinata. However, if you're asking if Haku likes Hinata in a more romantic sense, I'm reasonably sure that's not going to be the case. However, I'm not going to say for 100% that will be true, because sometimes characters can surprise you as you write and end up going a way you didn't expect.


	5. Chapter 5 The Chuunin Exams

Four Man Squads

Chapter 5 - The Chuunin Exams

Naruto woke up bright and early, even though he had hardly slept over the night. Today was the day of the Chuunin Exams. He was excited, this was his chance to prove that he was stronger, to prove that he could become the Hokage. Naruto bounded out of bed and into the shower. A few minutes later, Naruto had changed into the black and blue version of his trademark jumpsuit and was boiling some water for a couple of cups of instant ramen. Naruto did a quick double check on some of his gear that he prepared last night, then he heard the telltale sound of boiling water. He went and turned off his small stove and poured the water into the cups. Naruto then went back to checking his gear as he waited for his ramen to cook. After eating his makeshift breakfast, Naruto took off like a rocket out the door. Naruto hit the street and started walking towards Konoha Ninja Academy where they were supposed to turn in their applications that Obito had given them a couple of days prior. As he was walking he saw Sakura heading the other direction with a bundle in her arms.

"Hey, Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted as he waved at her.

"Huh? Hi, Naruto." Sakura greeted as he ran to her.

"What are you doing? The academy is the other way." Naruto asked.

"What are you talking about?" Sakura replied, "We don't have to be at the academy until four in the afternoon. Don't tell me you forgot?"

"Uhh… heh heh. Guess I did." Naruto answered sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Geez, you're such a idiot, sometimes." Sakura said.

"Anyway, what are you doing Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked, trying to change the subject.

"I'm delivering a parcel for my parents." She answered.

"Oh, what's it for?" Naruto prodded.

"If you must know, it's a birthday present for a family friend. Mom and Dad are busy running the store and couldn't deliver it themselves." Sakura explained.

"Well, I got some time to burn, mind if I come with?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto, are you trying to ask me on a date?" Sakura replied.

Naruto waved his hands in front of him, "No no no no, it's not that at all. I really don't have anything to do until the start of the exams, and I don't really have a lot of friends." Naruto said as he looked down at the ground.

Sakura sighed, "I guess you can accompany me. However, don't get any funny ideas."

"Thanks, Sakura-chan." Naruto replied happily

Sakura and Naruto continued down the street in relative silence. Neither one really had much to talk about. It wasn't until they were returning to Sakura's that Naruto finally broke the silence.

"So how do you feel about taking these exams?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not sure really. I know it's a great chance for all of us, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous or afraid." Sakura replied.

"We'll be fine." Naruto reassured her, "We are all awesome ninja, I got shadow clones, Sasuke has the Sharingan, Hinata has the Byakugan and that other ability, and you go those wicked genjutsu. Not to mention we've all been learning a lot over the past month."

"Yeah, you're right, I guess we'll be okay." Sakura said, "Later, Naruto, I still got to help my parents. I'll see you at the exams."

Naruto waved goodbye as Sakura took off back to her parent's bakery. Naruto then simply wandered aimlessly around Konoha for a few hours, trying to burn time until he was supposed to turn in his application along with his team. He was hoping to see Hinata, Haku, or even the Konohamaru Corps, but no one was to be found. Naruto was still wandering when he noticed that it was around noon. He figured he might as well stop by Ichiraku's for lunch.

After his rather large lunch, Naruto still had a few hours to burn before he figured he could go to the academy and wait for the others to show up. As he started to resume his meandering through Konoha, Naruto heard a familiar voice.

"What are you up to, idiot?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto turned around to see his friend and rival. "Not much, just trying to burn some time before the exams." Naruto answered.

Sasuke smirked, "You too, eh? I bet you didn't get a lot of sleep last night either, did you?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Naruto asked.

"I had the same problem." Sasuke said simply, "It's too exciting, isn't it?"

"Yeah." Naruto replied.

"So, you got any ideas for what to do for the next couple of hours?" Sasuke asked.

"Not really, I've just been strolling around town, hoping to bump into someone." Naruto replied.

Sasuke sighed, "Eh, shouldn't have expected you to have any ideas. I guess we can go ahead and go to the academy and see if we can get any clues as to who we are facing."

Naruto shrugged, "Sounds good to me."

Sasuke and Naruto made their way to Konoha Ninja Academy. However, as they waited for the rest of the team to show up, they couldn't really gleam any information about any of their upcoming opponents. Finally, after about an hour and a half, Hinata and Sakura showed up almost at the same time.

"We all ready for this?" Sasuke asked.

"Of course." replied Naruto.

"H-hai." answered Hinata.

"As much as I'll ever be." Sakura shrugged.

"Alright, let's rock this thing." Naruto said.

Together, Team 7 opened the doors to the Konoha Ninja Academy, ready to face whatever came their way.

---------------------------------

Sakura was walking up the stairs to the second floor when she noticed a large group of people standing around a door labeled "Room 301" She dropped her voice to a whisper to talk to her team, "This is a genjutsu, we're only on the second floor. Room 301 is on the third floor."

"Yeah, I figured." Sasuke said.

"Should we tell everybody?" Naruto asked.

"Of course not, idiot." Sasuke replied, "If they can't figure it out for themselves, the probably shouldn't be here."

Team 7 was broken out of their conversation by a small scuffle breaking out in front of the fake Room 301. "You plan to take the Chuunin Exams with that? You should just quit now." an older Konoha genin said to a boy clad in green spandex. Sakura looked at some of the other people around the boy and saw a familiar face. She tapped the raven haired boy on the shoulder.

"Hi, Haku." Sakura greeted quietly.

"Ah, Sakura-san. Hello to you, I'm glad to see you all are taking the exam as well." Haku replied, "I hope you have noticed the genjutsu."

"Of course," Sasuke said, "but what are you guys doing?"

"Feigning weakness so that everyone else will underestimate us in the exams." Haku replied.

Yet again, Team 7 is snapped out of their conversation by more commotion, this time a girl in a pink blouse has smacked out of the way.

"Tenten-san…" Haku muttered

"Listen, this is our kindness." One of the two older genin guarding the fake 301 said, "These exams aren't easy, even we have failed it 3 times, there are those who end up quitting as shinobi or even die because of these exams. Not to mention, Chuunins are captains. The failure of a mission, the death of a comrade, these are a Chuunin's responsibility, but you kids think you can pass? We're just weeding out the ones that would fail, what's wrong with that?"

"Whatever. Let's go." Sasuke said, "No point in getting involved."

"I agree." Sakura replied.

Team 7 made their way past the crowd and up to the third floor. As they were descending a small flight of stairs to a small foyer before entering the real Room 301 they heard a voice call out behind them.

"You are THE Sasuke Uchiha, the number one rookie, right?" the voice asked.

As Team 7 turned to see who it was who addressed them, they were surprised to see the green spandex-clad boy, the sight of him made Sakura's eyes hurt, that shiny bowl cut and those freakish eyes and those eyebrows.

"What do you want?" Sasuke replied.

"Will you fight me, right here?" was the boys answer.

"A fight? Right now?" Sasuke asked.

The boy jumped off the railing and landed on the ground in front of Team 7. "Yes" he answered.

"Fine, but I should at least know your name." Sasuke accepted.

"It's Rock Lee. I want to fight you to test my techniques against the offspring of the genius clan. Plus…" Lee turned his attention to Sakura and winked, "to prove my worth to that wonderful angel there."

"Not in a million years would I think about dating someone like you." Sakura put Lee down. However, regardless of her denial, Lee blew her a kiss. A kiss that Sakura as sure to avoid. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Naruto trembling.

"Challenging me while knowing about the Uchiha name…" Sasuke lectured, "Frankly, you're a fool. You're about to learn what this name means, thick brows."

"Please…" Lee started but was cut short.

"Wait!" Naruto shouted, "I'll take care of thick brows, just give me five minutes."

"N-Naruto-kun, don't…" Hinata pleaded.

"It is Uchiha I wish to fight, not you." Lee replied.

"Damn it!" Naruto shouted his reply as he began charging Lee. "I'm sick of hearing about Sasuke!"

Lee easily swiped away Naruto's first punch. However, not one to be stopped, Naruto immediately leveraged his body weight and the shift in direction into a high roundhouse kick.

"Konoha Reppu." Lee said as he deftly dodged Naruto's arching kick and proceeded to sweep Naruto's arms out from under him. The force of the sweep along with the momentum Naruto already had sent Naruto careening into the wall. Lee then raised back into his starting stance.

"I'll say this, you guys cannot defeat me. I am Konoha's strongest genin." Lee boasted.

"This sounds like fun." Sasuke smirked, "Are you ready?"

"Always." Lee replied.

Sasuke started his charge. Then Lee simply vanished to Sakura's eyes.

"Konoha Senpuu" Lee called out throwing a high jump kick, which forced Sasuke to duck, right into a low kick that Sasuke could no longer dodge. Sasuke tried to get his arms up to block, but ended up catching the kick in the face. The force of the kick launched Sasuke across the room.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried out in concern. However, Sakura noticed as Sasuke stood up that his eyes were different. They were red and had two tick marks each, kind of like Obito's eyes when he fought Zabuza, though Obito's eyes had three marks. Sakura gasped as she realized Sasuke had the Sharingan. Surely, Sasuke would win now that he had the Sharingan.

However, Sakura's joy was short lived. On Sasuke's next charge Lee caught him under the chin with a kick and launched Sasuke skyward.

"I'm sure you noticed, but my techniques are neither ninjutsu or genjutsu." Lee said as he launched himself into a position behind Sasuke.

"Shadow of the Dancing Leaf" Lee announced his attack. Sakura watched in horror as lee and Sasuke seemed to have a conversation she couldn't hear, and then the bandages around Lee's arms began unwinding. However, before Lee could finish his attack, a pinwheel pinned one of Lee's bandages to the wall.

"That's enough, Lee!' a strong voice commanded. Sakura turned to see that it came from a… turtle? However, before she could really process the information she saw that Sasuke was going to land, and didn't seem to be making a move to brace himself. She rushed out and caught her love.

"All you alright, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked. Sasuke didn't respond, he just sat there staring at nothing.

"Lee! That technique is forbidden." The turtle reprimanded the green-clad genin.

"I'm sorry, I just…" Lee apologized. Sakura looked around to see Hinata bringing a stunned Naruto back to his senses. Sakura could still hear Lee talking to the turtle, but she wasn't really paying attention. She turned her attention back to her one and only.

"Sasuke-kun, are you alright?" Sakura asked again. Finally, Sasuke seemed to come back to his senses.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I can't believe he was using nothing but taijutsu." Sasuke answered. Sakura couldn't believe her ears, all of that was taijutsu, but it definitely looked like there were some ninjutsu in there somewhere. Hinata and Naruto had made their way back over to Sasuke and Sakura, but before they could even begin a conversation they were surprised by a loud pop and a puff of smoke.

A man now stood on the turtle, he was almost an exact carbon copy of Lee, as far as Sakura could tell, except he was older and his eyes weren't as freaky.

"Geez, you guys are the epitome of youthfulness." The man exclaimed.

Every member of Team 7, except Hinata, who had seen Might Guy before, made a snide comment about some part of the new arrival's appearance.

"Stop insulting Guy-sensei!" Lee shouted.

"Lee…" Guy said.

Lee calmed down and replied, "Yes?"

"You fool!" Guy yelled as he slugged Lee right in the jaw, sending Lee sprawling.

"Sensei, I…" Lee started.

"It's alright Lee, you don't need to say it." Guy said as Lee ran into Guy's embrace.

"Guy-sensei!" Lee yelled.

"Lee!" Guy yelled back.

"Guy-sensei!"

"Lee!"

Team 7 didn't know what to think, or even where to begin in how to process the scene before them.

"Lee, this is what youth is all about." Guy said as he and Lee finally left each other's arms, "Youth and mistakes go together. But, you did start a fight and you almost broke my rules, so you will be punished after the Chuunin Exams."

"Yes, sensei." Lee agreed.

Guy turned to Team 7 and looked at them. "Hey you kids, How's Obito doing?"

Sakura said the first thing that came to her mind, "You know Obito-sensei?"

"Know him? Hah, we were on a team together a long time ago, I even saved his life once." Guy answered.

Everyone in Team 7 just looked at him like he had just grown a new pair of legs. This guy was on a team with Obito-sensei? Unbelievable.

"Anyway," Guy said as he threw a Kunai and knocked the pinwheel out of the wall, freeing Lee's bandages, "You guys and Lee should head on over to class room. Good luck, Lee. Later." In a flash Guys was gone and no trace of him, or the turtle to be seen.

After the departure of his sensei, Lee addressed Sasuke again, "Sasuke, I'll say one more thing, I lied before. Most likely the strongest leaf genin is on my team, I entered into this exam to beat him, and now you're also one of my targets. Be prepared during the exam." After relaying his message, Lee took off to Room 301.

"Looks like the Uchiha clan isn't worth much these days." Naruto said.

"Shut up, idiot." Sasuke replied, "I'll beat him next time."

"Sure you will." Naruto mocked, "You just got your ass beat, and I know you saw his hand. Bushy-brow must've trained really hard, every day. More than you, that's all it is."

Sakura was confused, was Naruto poking fun at Sasuke or trying to be reassuring, she couldn't tell.

"This is getting more fun by the minute." Sasuke said, his confident smirk had returned.

"You bet." Naruto replied.

"You ready to go, Naruto? Sakura? Hinata?" Sasuke asked.

"Hell yeah!" was the reply from Naruto.

"H-hai." Hinata affirmed.

"Yep." Sakura answered.

Team 7 strode off towards Room 301. Naruto was the first to speak on their way.

"I wonder how Haku deals with those two every day?" he asked.

"I don't know." Sakura replied, "I just met them, and they drive me nuts. I can't believe Haku hasn't gone nuts already." At that, Team 7 shared a laugh. Well, Sakura and Naruto laughed, Hinata giggled a little, and Sasuke just wore his trademark smirk. After a little walk, they approached Room 301, surprised to find Obito standing in front of the door.

"Well, it looks like the whole team showed up. So, you all can properly take the exam." Obito said.

"What do you mean, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"The truth is, this exam can only be taken by groups of four." Obito said.

"But, you implied that this was an individual choice." Sasuke said.

"Yes, I did, but I knew that if you all had to take the exam as a team, You and Naruto would have pressured Hinata and Sakura into taking the exam, even if they didn't feel up to it. If one of you failed to show up, your exam would have ended here." Obito explained, "However, you all showed up. I'm proud of you guys, now you better get going, you don't have much time left."

"Yeah, let's go." Naruto said excitedly as he opened the doors to Room 301. Team 7 crossed the threshold as a single unit.

--------------------------

Hinata stopped from shock as she entered Room 301, and the rest of her team didn't get much farther. The room was completely full, there were easily over a hundred people in the room waiting for the start of the exam, and most of them looked fairly strong from what Hinata could tell. However, Hinata's time of wonderment was short lived as she was snapped back to reality by a shrill yell.

"Sasuke-kun! You're late!" the yell belonged to Ino Yamanaka. She embraced Sasuke from behind and then proceeded to whisper something in his ear.

"Get away from Sasuke-kun, Ino-pig!" Sakura shouted as she looked upon Ino's embrace of Sasuke. Sasuke simply wore a look of annoyance.

Ino replied, "Why if it isn't Sakura. Big, ugly forehead as always…"

"What did you say?" Sakura yelled in response.

Hinata saw the rest of Ino's team walking up. Shikamaru Nara, Chouji Akimichi, and Tsuneni Tadashii strolled over to where Ino was still embracing Sasuke, even though he wasn't returning the favor.

"I don't think he likes you." Tsuneni said to Ino.

"Shut up, Tsuneni." Ino replied angrily.

"Just stating an observation." Tsuneni answered indifferently.

"Oh man, you guys are taking this test too?" Shikamaru asked rhetorically, "This is getting so troublesome."

"Yahoo! Found you!" a familiar voice shouted from a small ways away. Hinata turned to see Team 8 coming over to where the rest of the rookies were.

"Hello guys, seems like everyone's here." Kaen greeted everyone warmly. Her flame-like hair dancing as she walked up to the rest of the group.

"Geez, you guys are here too…" Shikamaru said to himself.

"Looks like the all twelve of this year's rookies are taking the exam." Kiba said, "I wonder how far we'll get. Eh, Sasuke?"

"Pfft, You seem confident, Kiba." Sasuke replied with his trademark smirk.

"We've done a lot of training." Kiba answered, "We won't lose to you."

"Shut up!" Naruto yelled in response, "Sasuke might, but I won't lose to the likes of you."

"Hmph," Shiroi answered as he took a spot casually leaning against the wall, "We'll see about that, dead last."

"Hey, you guys should be more quiet." An unknown voice called out. Hinata turned to see a bespectacled, silver-haired Leaf-nin walking up to them, "You guys are rookies just out of the academy, right? And you're screaming like school girls. This isn't a picnic."

"Who do you think you are?" Ino replied.

"My name's Kabuto." the genin replied, "However, I think you should look behind you."

Hinata turned to look behind her and was immediately afraid of what she saw. Everyone else in the classroom was staring daggers at the rookie twelve. Hinata immediately turned away from the scrutiny.

"Everyone is nervous about this exam. So you need to quiet down before you make a scene." Kabuto said, "But, I can't really blame you. You guys are clueless rookies. Actually, you remind me a lot of how I used to be."

"Kabuto-san?" Sakura ventured.

"Yeah." Kabuto replied.

"Is this your second time?" Sakura asked.

"Seventh, actually. These exams are held twice a year, so this is my fourth year." Kabuto answered.

"So, you know a lot about this exam?" Sakura replied.

"That's right." Kabuto answered as he started rummaging through his hip pouch, he then whipped out some orange backed cards, "I guess I should share some information with you guys, with my Ninja Info Cards."

"Ninja Info Cards?" Sakura asked.

"They are basically cards that have info burned into them with chakra." Kabuto explained, "I have four years of info piled into these two hundred cards. They look blank, but if I put a little of my chakra into them…" Kabuto took a card and spun it on the ground, injecting a small amount of chakra into it. I popped into a small graph, showing where the 204 participants for the Chuunin Exam came from.

"Well I can see where that would be pretty handy." Shiroi remarked from his lounging spot on the wall.

"Do you have cards with info on individuals?" Sasuke asked.

"Oh, some guys you're worried about? Of course, my info isn't perfect, but I do have something on everyone here, even you guys. Give me a little info on these guys and I'm sure I can find them." Kabuto replied.

"Gaara of the Desert of Suna and Rock Lee from Konoha." Sasuke answered.

"Oh, you got names? This should be easy then…" Kabuto said as he sliced two cards out of the deck.

"Show me." Sasuke almost commanded.

"Alright, first Rock Lee. Sensei: Might Guy. Teammates: Neji Hyuga, Tenten Saseru, and Haku Kousetsu. One year older than you guys, he has completed 20 D-rank and 12 C-rank missions. He's extremely skilled in Taijutsu but not much else." Kabuto explained the readout on the card he held up, "Next, Gaara of the Desert. Sensei: Baki. Teammates: his siblings Temari and Kankuro, as well as Chiyoko Guujin. Since he's a newcomer from another village, I don't have a lot of info on his skills. He's completed 8 C-Rank and 1 B-rank mission, and has never been injured."

A small silence overcame the rookie twelve as they processed the information of a ninja that had never been injured. It was an impossibility, no matter how good you were, something would go wrong eventually. Kabuto broke the silence.

"Anyway, Even though Oto is a small village just created last year, all the hidden village have sent their best genin to take the exam." Kabuto said.

"So troublesome…" Shikamaru commented.

Hinata looked over to see Naruto shaking. _He must be nervous, _she thought, _maybe I should say something._ However, as soon as she reached out her hand and began to attempt to say something to her crush, he snapped up straight and pointed into the crowd.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki! And, I won't lose to you bastards!" Naruto shouted, "You got that?"

However, the reaction from Naruto's outburst was short lived as four blurs came out of the crowd and attacked Kabuto. While Kabuto managed to dodge all of the attacks, something was off. Kabuto's glasses broke and he was losing his lunch. Standing above him were 4 Oto genin.

"Pathetic considering you're a four year veteran. Write this down on one of your cards, the four Oto ninjas, definite future chunins." The groups apparent leader said. He looked like a mummy with bandages covering everything but his left eye, and he wore a strange contraption on his arm.

The next moment, there was a small explosion at the front of the room, accompanied by a very strong commanding voice, "Quiet down you worthless maggots!" As the smoke cleared a small force of Konoha chuunins had appeared in the room.

A horribly scarred man continued, "Thank you for waiting. I am Ibiki Morino, the proctor for the first section of the Chuunin Exams." Ibiki then pointed a finger at the Oto-nins, "Oto ninjas, stop doing as you please before the exam, or do you want to fail?"

"Sorry, it's our first time, I guess we got carried away." the leader replied.

"Bah, anyway everyone come to the front and pick up your table assignment, the first part of the Chuunin Exams starts now." Ibiki commanded.

----------------------------

Naruto was a wreck as he sat down and stared at the paper face down on his desk. Why did it have to be a written test? Naruto knew that his main weakness at the academy was written exams. He was going to fail before he even had a chance to prove what he could do. He looked around and saw that he was completely separated from the rest of his team. He was sitting in the middle section, third row from the front. Sasuke was back and to his right. Sakura was directly behind him, almost all the way to the back of the room, and Hinata was on the front row to his left. No chance of maybe getting them to help.

"Now before we begin," Ibiki started his lecture, "there are some rules we need to go over. There will be no questions allowed, so listen carefully. The first rule, you guys start with ten points, there are ten questions each worth a point. This exam uses a subtraction system, so answer all right you keep your ten points, answer three wrong you lose three of your points and go to seven. Second rule, this is a team test, whether you pass or not depends on the combined grade of your whole team, so the teams will compete to see how many points they can hold on to from the initial team total of 40."

"Wait a second! I don't understand this point system either, but why is this a team test?" Sakura asked.

"Shut up! I said no questions." Ibiki commanded. "Third rule, during this exam if any of my officers catch anyone doing anything sneaky, namely cheating, they will deduct two points from your score. So there will be those who lose all their points before the end of the exam, and they will be asked to leave. Realize that those pathetic shinobi who get caught cheating will be destroying themselves. As shinobi trying to achieve the rank of Chuunin, be proud ninjas. Also, the last rule, anyone who loses all their points will be failed along with their teammates."

Naruto took a gulp, he had a sneaking suspicion that someone, or maybe a couple of someones, wanted him dead.

"You have one hour, begin!" Ibiki heralded the beginning of the first exam.

Naruto forced himself to calm down. All he had to do was answer one question and he was sure that the rest of his team could pull him through the exam. He looked at the first question, it was a cryptogram, Naruto looked at the puzzle for a few seconds and realized that he wasn't going to figure it out so skipped to the next question. Naruto then looked at the second question, it involved math, so he immediately skipped it. Naruto then glanced at all the questions, and realized that he couldn't answer a single one.

"Damn it, what am I going to do?" Naruto asked himself, "I can't answer a single one of these questions. What's up with question 10 anyway? 'Won't be given until fifteen minutes are left in the exam'? This is bullshit."

Naruto racked his brain, he was going to have to cheat. However, a battle raged in his mind, he didn't want to get caught an fail that way, but if he didn't cheat he was going to fail anyway. He was running out of time.

"That's it, I'm just going to have to cheat." Naruto muttered to himself. As soon as he finished his statement, a kunai whizzed by his head and landed in the test paper of the genin directly behind him.

Naruto watched as the genin stood up, "What the hell was that for?" the genin asked.

"You were caught cheating 5 times. You and your team fail, leave now." one of the chunin proctors commanded.

"Never mind, can't cheat." Naruto muttered to himself as he watched the other boy and his team leave the classroom. Naruto looked down at question ten again, and made his decision. He was going to gamble his whole exam on question 10, he was just going to have to wait. Naruto began to wait, he had about 15 more minutes before the final question was to be given. Naruto watched as around a dozen more teams got eliminated because of cheating. As soon as there were 15 minutes left in the exam, Ibiki spoke up.

"Alright, we will now start the tenth question." Ibiki said. Naruto took a deep breath, this was it, all or nothing.

"Now, before we get to it, I'd like to address the additional rules for question 10." Ibiki instructed, "These are the rules of desperation. You must decide whether or not to take this question."

"Choose? What if we choose not to?" A voice called from the back. Naruto turned to see it belonged to the Suna kunoichi from the incident with Konohamaru, from what Naruto remembered from Kabuto's Ninja Info Card, it was Gaara of the Desert's teammate Temari.

"If you choose not to take the question, your points will immediately be reduced to zero, and you'll fail along with your teammates." Ibiki stated.

Naruto heard a bunch of the others voice how they would just take the question anyway.

"The next rule to question ten, if you take this question and miss it you will lose the right to ever take the Chuunin Exams again." Ibiki informed the remaining genin. The promptly shut everyone up.

Naruto heard Kiba yell, "What kind of stupid rule is that? There are guys in here that have taken the exam before."

Ibiki merely chuckled before giving his response, "This time you were unlucky, it's my rules. But, I am giving you an out. Those who aren't confident and refuse to take it and come back for the next exam. Now let's begin the tenth question. Those that do not wish to take the question raise your hands, after your number has been confirmed, you will leave."

Naruto was floored. This wasn't what he was expecting. Now he could either leave and fail on the spot taking Sasuke, Sakura, and Hinata with him, or try this question, and if he missed it he would be a genin forever. Naruto watched as people around him raised their hands and began to file out of the room with their teams. Naruto trembled at the thought of being a genin forever, so lost was he in his own thoughts he didn't even notice that both Sakura and Hinata were preparing to raise their hands. Naruto shot his hand into the air, and then immediately slammed it on the table, his mind made up.

"Don't underestimate me!" Naruto roared, "I will not run away. I'll take it! Even if I'm a genin forever, I'll will myself to becoming the Hokage anyway! I am not afraid!"

"I'll ask you again. Your life is riding on this decision. This is your last chance to quit." Ibiki calmly responded to the outburst.

Naruto replied, "I always follow up on my words, that's my nindo."

Ibiki took stock of the rest of the genin in the room, "Good decision. Now, to the 104 of you remaining, I congratulate you all on passing the first test."

"What do you mean we pass? What about the tenth question?" Sakura asked.

Ibiki cracked a huge smile, "There never was one, or you could say that choice was the tenth question."

"Then what were the first nine questions for? They were pointless." Temari yelled.

"No, they served their purpose. They tested you individual information gathering abilities, those of you found lacking were expelled." Ibiki commented, the smile never leaving. "First, as the rules stated, success on this test was based on the whole team doing well. Therefore, there was a lot of pressure on each member not to mess things up for the whole team. However, the questions were not the type that most genin could answer. Therefore, I'm sure most of you reached the conclusion that to pass you'd have to cheat. The premises of this test was to cheat, basically. As targets, we had a team of chuunins who knew all the answers."

A small murmur rose up among the remaining genin about how hard it was to find the chuunins mixed into the room. Ibiki continued, "But those that cheat poorly fail, of course," Ibiki removed his bandana with his forehead protector on it, to show a head filled with scars from burns, cuts, and what looked like drill holes, "because, at times information is more important than life, and, on missions and the battlefield, people risk their lives for information." Ibiki then retied hi bandana on to his head, "If the enemy or a third party notices you, there is no guarantee your info will be accurate. I want you to remember this, important information in your hands can be a powerful weapon for your comrades and your village. So, we had you gather info through cheating. This clearly separated those that had the abilities needed from those who didn't."

"I still don't understand the tenth question." Temari said.

"Question ten was the true purpose of this exam." Ibiki explained, "The 'take it' or 'not take it' decision was obviously a very painful choice. Choose the second option, and you fail along with your teammates. Choose the first, and you may never be able to advance past genin. The decision you reach determines whether or not you are ready to be chuunins. Hypothetically, you're assigned a mission to steal a secret document. The amount of enemy ninja, their abilities, and whether or not there are any traps are unknown to you. Do you accept this mission or not? Because you don't want to die, because you don't want to see your friends hurt, can you avoid the dangerous mission? The answer is simply no. No matter the danger, there are missions you can't avoid. The ability to be courageous and to survive any hardship, these are the traits of a chuunin. Those weaklings who can't put their destinies on the line, who cling to an uncertain future, and walk away are not fit and don't have the right to become chuunin. That's how I feel. Those who chose to take the tenth question, answered it correctly. You will be able to survive any obstacles you find in the future. You've made it through the first exam, I wish you all luck."

"Hell yeah!" Naruto exclaimed, "First one down!"

Suddenly, on of the windows exploded and large ball barreled into the room. Kunai shot out from the mass and embedded themselves into the floor and ceiling. As everything settled down, there was a purple-haired woman in a trench coat and steel mesh outfit standing in front of a large banner.

"This is no time to be celebrating!" The new arrival shouted, "I am the proctor for the second test, Anko Mitarashi. Now let's go. Follow me."

Ibiki poked his head out from behind the banner, "You're early, Anko…"

"104?" Anko asked Ibiki, "You left 26 teams? The test was way to easy."

"There are a lot of outstanding ones this time." Ibiki answered.

"Fine, I'll at least cut the numbers in half during the second exam. But, I'm getting ahead of myself, I'll explain everything once we've relocated, follow me." With that Anko left the room with the 104 remaining genins hot on her trails.

---------------------------

Hinata looked at the huge trees inside the fenced area that the new proctor had led them to. Something about that forest didn't quite feel right. Not to mention that there were danger signs plastered all over the fence.

"Welcome to the stage for the second exam, Training Area 44." Anko announced, "Otherwise known as the Forest of Death."

Hinata managed to hear Sakura mutter, "Creepy…"

"You'll soon find out why it's called the Forest of Death." Anko said cryptically.

"'You'll soon find out why it's called the Forest of Death.'" Naruto mocked, "You think that scared me? This is nothing! I'm not afraid!"

Suddenly Anko threw a kunai that grazed Naruto's cheek, and she appeared behind him. Hinata was close enough to hear what she said.

"Kids like you are killed quickly," Anko said to Naruto as she licked some of the blood off his cheek, "spraying that red blood that I love…"

Before Anko could finish whatever she was going to say, a Kusa genin appeared behind her holding Anko's tossed kunai in her tongue.

"Here's your kunai." The Kusa nin said.

"Why thank you." Anko replied jovially as she took the kunai from the genin. Then her voice turned dead serious, "But you know, don't sneak up behind me unless you want to die."

"I just get excited when I see red blood. Plus you cut my precious hair, I couldn't help it." the Kusa genin responded.

"Sorry about that." Anko replied, "Looks like we have a bunch of bloodthirsty ones this time. This should be fun." Then Anko brought her voice back up to a level where everyone could hear her, "Now, before we start the second exam, there's something I have to pass out." Anko produced a pile of papers from her trench coat. "You all must sign these consent forms. There are going to be death in this one, and if I don't have you sign these, I would all be my responsibility. I'm going to explain the second test, then I'll pass out the forms for you all to sign, and then you all can turn them in at the booth behind me. Simply put, this exam is the ultimate survival test. First I'll explain the area, Training Area 44 is surrounded by a fence with 44 gates. The area is a forest with a river going down the middle. In the middle of the area, ten kilometers from each gate is a tower. During your survival test you'll be competing in a no holds barred battle for scrolls."

"Scrolls?" Hinata heard someone ask.

"Yes." Anko answered as she produced a black scroll and a white scroll, "You will be fighting over these two scrolls, the Heaven Scroll and Earth Scroll. There are 104 people here, 26 teams, which means 13 will get a Heaven Scroll and 13 will get an Earth Scroll. To pass this exam, your team must reach the tower in the middle of the area with both scrolls."

"So 13 teams will lose their scrolls. Half the teams will definitely fail." Sakura extrapolated.

"But, there's a time limit of five days." Anko replied.

"Five days! What about food!" Chouji yelled.

Anko simply shrugged, "You're on your own. There's plenty of things to eat in the forest, but then there's plenty of things that would eat you too. Also, 13 teams passing is highly unlikely. As the days go on, the distance to the goal will become greater, and the time to rest will grow shorter. The area will be crawling with enemies, you won't be getting much sleep. Some will fail simply by losing their scroll, others will die simply due to the harshness of the course. There are two ways to get disqualified, one is to not make it to the tower with both scrolls in the time limit, and the other is to lose a teammate or have a teammate killed. There is no quitting in the middle of the exam, once you're in, you are in for the full five days. One more rule, you must not look inside the scrolls."

"What happens if we do?" Naruto asked."

Anko just smirked, "That'll be a surprise for anyone who does. A chuunin will be asked to handle classified information, this is to test your trustworthiness. That's it for explanations, you may exchange your four consent forms for a scroll, then choose a gate for the start of the exam. One last word of advice… Don't die!"

Team 7 gathered to sign their forms. Shortly after Anko finished her introduction to the exam, a chuunin opened a flap to the booth.

"We are now accepting forms in exchange for scrolls." He informed the groups of genin before turning back into the booth.

"Hinata?" Sasuke addressed Hinata.

Hinata was caught off guard. Sasuke rarely, if ever, talked to her directly. "Y-yes, S-Sasuke."

"Can you see into the tent with the Byakugan?" Sasuke asked, "If we could figure out who has what scroll, it would make things a lot easier for us."

"I-I'll see if I c-can." Hinata answered as she moved her hands to the familiar sign, "Byakugan!" Hinata's vision changed, now she could see chakra, as well as seeing almost all around her. She looked into the canvas covered booth, she could see into the booth easily enough. However, while she could see the scrolls they were all just masses of blue, she couldn't see any distinguishing attributes. "I-I'm sorry, b-but it seems that there are s-some powerful enhancements attached t-to those scrolls, they are obscured to m-my vision."

"Eh, figures they'd be prepared for the Byakugan…" Sasuke muttered to himself.

"At least you tried, Hinata." Naruto encouraged her, "We'll just have to hope we get lucky."

Team 7 then turned in their forms at the booth and received a Heaven Scroll and their gate assignment. Sasuke held on to the scroll for Team 7, then they just watched as the rest of the teams went into the booth and received their scrolls and gate assignments.

As the last team emerged from the booth, Anko addressed the group of genin again, "Everyone follow an instructor to your assigned gate, we start the exam in 30 minutes."

Team 7 followed the proctor assigned to them to gate 12. Thirty minutes later, the proctor unlocked the gate, and Team 7 entered the Forest of Death.

"Alright! Let's go!" Naruto yelled as they entered the forest.

After an hour or so, a bloodcurdling scream echoed through the forest, stopping Team 7 in their tracks, just to make sure they weren't being attacked.

"That was a human scream, right?" Sakura asked, "I'm starting to get nervous."

"M-me t-t-too." Hinata agreed.

"It's nothing, Sakura-chan, Hinata-chan." Naruto reassured them both. He then put his hands behind his heads, "I gotta pee…" Naruto ran over to a bush and began to unzip his trousers.

"BAKA!" Sakura yelled as she nailed him in the back of the head, "What are you doing in front of ladies? Do that in the bushes."

Naruto went into the bushes and came back out a few minutes later, "Man, I feel so much better." However, Hinata noticed something wrong with Naruto. Namely, his weapon holster was on his left leg, though Naruto was right-handed. However, before Hinata could do anything about it, Sasuke had slugged Naruto in the jaw.

"Where's the real Naruto?" Sasuke demanded.

"What the hell are you talking about?" The fake Naruto answered.

"Naruto-kun is right-handed. You're weapon holster is on your left leg." Hinata answered. She was angry, if this guy had done anything to Naruto, she was going to introduce him to a whole new world of pain.

"That, and you don't have the scratch the proctor put on the real Naruto, you suck a transforming more than Naruto does." Sasuke added. The fake Naruto then showed his real form. An Ame-nin with what looked to be a rebreather in his mouth.

"Unlucky! Too bad you figured it out, looks like I'll have to take your scroll by force." the Ame genin said.

However, Sasuke was faster, he flashed some quick signs and announced, "Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" A large spread of fireballs launched from Sasuke's mouth. The Ame-nin dodged them easily. Sasuke then rushed in and clashed with the enemy ninja. Hinata had activated her Byakugan and had found Naruto. She then used a kunai to set him free. As soon as Naruto was freed, Hinata heard an explosion from behind her. The explosion had stunned Sasuke, and he was now being flanked by the Ame genin and had a kunai at his back.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled out.

Naruto threw a kunai at the Ame-nin, forcing him to separate from Sasuke. Surprisingly, Sasuke caught the kunai with chakra from his foot and threw it with amazing speed at the retreating Ame-nin. Sasuke then followed it up by planting his elbow into the enemies gut and grabbing and digging the kunai deeper into the Ame-nin's left shoulder.

Sasuke then yelled at the rest of the team, "Don't just stand around, make sure there aren't others. Relax for a moment, and we might all get killed."

Hinata did a quick scan of their surroundings with her Byakugan, but she didn't find any reinforcements, apparently this ninja was alone. As she turned her attention back to Sasuke, she could see that the Ame-nin had already ran away.

"Th-there aren't any m-more." Hinata said, "H-he was alone."

"Good," Sasuke said, "If there had been more we might have been in trouble. We need a codeword, so if we get separated again we have a way of knowing who is friend and who is foe. This is what we'll do, You'll ask Ninja Song 'Ninja Chance'. The response will be 'It is the chance to sneak up where a large number of enemies are making a scene. The quiet place has no secret hideout. It is important for a shinobi to know the right time. The time when the enemy is tired and drops his guard.' Got it?"

"Got it." Sakura confirmed.

"H-hai." Hinata answered.

"That's impossible to remember!" Naruto said, "Are sure this is the password?"

"Are you stupid?" Sakura asked, "I memorized it already."

"Anyway, I'll continue to hold the scroll." Sasuke said.

As the team got ready to leave, a large blast of wind started carving through the forest.

"More enemies?" Sasuke asked rhetorically.

All Hinata could tell as she was blown away was that she was seemingly alongside Naruto, and Sasuke and Sakura were being separated from them. That was the last thing she could see before she hit a tree and passed out.

-----------------------

Naruto couldn't remember ever being in so much pain. Not even the beatings he received from drunks as a kid or that needle barrage from Haku in the Land of Waves hurt as much as this did. He felt like someone dropped the moon right onto his head. As he began to shake the cobwebs out, he noticed Hinata was laying a few feet away, apparently passed out. As Naruto began to stand and make his way over to Hinata, he watched an ominously large shadow envelop him.

_Oh, this can't be good_, Naruto thought to himself. He turned to see the biggest snake he had ever laid eyes on. _For the love of everything sacred, what in the hell is that thing?_

Naruto quickly moved to Hinata's limp body and slung her over his shoulder. The giant snake quickly pursued and attempted to catch Naruto and Hinata before they could get away. Naruto was able to make his way for a little bit, but the combination of the facts that he was still woozy from the jutsu that hit him earlier and that he didn't see the hit coming until it was way too late led to him getting whacked by the tail of the giant snake. He mentally cursed as Hinata was separated from him and landed much to close to the snake. Before he could get himself up off the ground and get back to Hinata, the snake had already wrapped itself around her and opened it's gaping maw.

"Hinata-chan!" Naruto screamed as he took off to take on the snake. Apparently, the combined forces of the crushing force of the snake and the volume of Naruto's scream was enough to wake Hinata, and she was immediately greeted by the sight of the largest set of fangs she had aver seen before she was swallowed whole. Her only reaction was to let out a gut wrenching scream as the giant snake ate her.

"NOOOOOO!" Naruto shouted, "You want a meal, you fucking overgrown earthworm? Come over here and get one."

The giant snake gladly obliged Naruto as it scooped him up and swallowed him up in one gulp too. Inside the belly of the beast, Naruto couldn't see anything, and he could feel a slight stinging sensation. Apparently, the snake was already digesting them, Naruto had to get to Hinata quickly, or there might not be a Hinata left to get to. Naruto began to do his best to "swim" deeper into the snakes bowels.

"Hinata-chan, Can you hear me?" Naruto called out.

"N-Naruto-kun, what happened?" Hinata's voice answered.

"I don't know, we got hit by that wind jutsu then there was a giant snake that ate you, then I got it to eat me so I could save you." Naruto replied.

"W-what are we going to do?" Hinata inquired.

"Hold on, I think I got an idea. Let's see how this things likes eating way too much." Naruto said as he fired up his signature technique, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Naruto began pumping the insides of the snake full of shadow clones. The snake began to groan in pain as it's body was forcibly expanded.

"Puke us up already, damn it." Naruto yelled angrily as continued to make more copies of himself. A few moment after he said that, the insides of the snake rumbled and was then followed by some sickening popping sounds. Naruto and Hinata were both overjoyed to see daylight. Both of them were covered in blood, guts, and digestive juice, but at least they were alive.

Naruto looked up to take stock at what happened. He had forced so many clones into the insides of the snake that the pressures had ripped the top half of the snake apart. Naruto then turned to look at his teammate, "Are you all right, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked concernedly.

"Y-yes, Naruto-kun. I'm fine" Hinata replied as she stood up.

"Good," Naruto answered, his voice more at ease, "we need to find Sasuke and Sakura now."

"H-hai." Hinata agreed, "Byakugan!"

Naruto watched as Hinata did a quick scan of the area, "Find them?"

"H-hai, follow me quickly." Hinata said as she took off.

"What's wrong, Hinata?" Naruto asked worriedly as he took to the trees behind her.

"They're currently fighting someone, and it can't be a genin. He has way to much chakra to be a normal genin." Hinata explained.

Hinata and Naruto went as fast as they possibly could to the place where Sasuke and Sakura were. After a couple of minutes Naruto emerged to see something slithering up a tree trunk to get to Sasuke. Naruto unleashed a small barrage of shuriken and kunai designed more to get the enemy to stop than to hurt him.

Naruto landed on a nearby tree branch, "I'm sorry, Sasuke. I forgot the codeword." Naruto looked down at the one they were fighting and saw it was actually a kunoichi they were fighting.

"Naruto, I know you think you're cool and here to save us. But, forget it! Run, this guy is on a whole new level." Sasuke yelled at him, terror filling his eyes.

"Heh, looks like you defeated the giant snake, Naruto-kun. However, where's little Hinata-chan?" the kunoichi asked. As Naruto looked closely at her, Naruto realized it was the same Kusa genin from the incident with the proctor. However, Naruto just smiled.

"Jyuuken!" Hinata announced as she exploded from below the kunoichi. However, her attack only hit the tree.

"Oh ho, nice plan. Naruto distracts while Hinata attacks while my guards off. Good, but not good enough." the Kusa kunoichi smirked as she dodged Hinata's blow.

Suddenly, Sasuke blurted out, "I will give you the scroll, please take it and leave us."

"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled in anger, "What the hell are you talking about?! Why would you give our scroll to the enemy?!"

"I see, very smart." the Kusa-nin said, smirking, "The only way for the prey to escape a predator is to give the predator a different meal."

"Take it." Sasuke said as he tossed the scroll to the kunoichi. However, Naruto immediately jumped in and intercepted the pass, landing next to Sasuke.

"You bastard!" Sasuke yelled at his teammate, "What are you doing? Do you understand our situation?" However, before Sasuke could continue his tirade, Naruto slugged him right on the jaw.

"What was that for?" Sasuke shouted as he landed on the next tree branch over.

"I can't remember the code, but you're a fake Sasuke, right?" Naruto said.

"You idiot, I'm the real Sasuke!" Sasuke yelled in contention.

"Liar! There's no way a stupid coward like you is the Sasuke I know!' Naruto shouted in return, "I don't know how strong this guy is, but there is no guarantee that he'll let us go if we give him our scroll. You're the one to freaked out to understand the situation."

"Heh, Naruto-kun is correct. Since I can just kill you and take the scroll." the Kusa genin said.

"Shut up!" Naruto yelled and began to charge the Grass kunoichi. Hinata also followed him in.

"No! Hinata! Naruto! Run away!" Sasuke shouted.

As the two began their charge, the Kusa kunoichi bit her thumb and spread her blood over a seal on her arm and then launched into a quick volley of hand seals, "Summoning Jutsu."

In a large blast of smoke the Kusa-nin was now standing on top of another giant snake. The blast of the summoning knocked Naruto and Hinata back and they both hit a tree.

"Naruto! Hinata!" Sakura and Sasuke yelled at the same time.

"Go ahead, eat them." the Kusa kunoichi commanded her snake.

"No way! You can go eat shit!" Naruto yelled, his eyes had changed. They had turned red and the pupils turned into vertical slits. Hinata knew this feeling before, the chakra he was channeling was the same as when he fought Haku. What was this chakra?

The Kusa-nin's eyes actually showed a brief moment of fear, before she blew Naruto away with another wind jutsu. She then turned to Sasuke, "Sasuke-kun, it's your turn. What will you do?" As the giant snake neared Sasuke he made no move to get out of the way. Sasuke was frozen.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled.

However, mere feet before the snake barreled into Sasuke, it was stopped by Naruto. Sasuke's eyes went wide as he watched the display of power from the "dead last".

"Hey," Naruto said as he looked at Sasuke with his changed eyes, "Are you alright, scaredy-cat?"

However, Naruto couldn't do anything as the kunoichi used her tongue to pick up Naruto, "So the Kyuubi brat is still alive, eh? Whenever your feeling powerful emotions the power of the fox filters through, interesting." The kunoichi said as she lifted up Naruto's shirt, "Oh my, the seal is visible."

Hinata, watched as the kunoichi built up chakra for some sort of attack. Naruto had no way to protect himself, she had to help him. She moved into range, and she could see them again, the tenketsu were visible to her. Then came the green seal that marked the distance of the technique.

"Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms!" Hinata announced. However, she only manage to get in the first two steps of the technique before the Kusa kunoichi managed to stop her technique, something she never even heard of happening before. However, she still managed to shut off the tenketsu in the arm the kunoichi was charging her jutsu to, disabling the technique. However, Hinata was now much too close to the Kusa-nin, and received a strong kick in her gut for her trouble. Hinata was immediately knocked out. Naruto raged, one of his friends was being hurt because of she was trying to protect him. Anger became his being, and he found strength he never knew he had. He managed to rip himself from the Kusa-nin and proceeded to wail on he with every fiber in his being. Naruto barely realized that Sasuke had actually entered the fray as well, launched combinations of fire jutsus and weapon attacks.

"This is getting a little too dangerous." The Kusa kunoichi said. "I was happy to test your powers, Sasuke-kun. I'll reward you with a small gift." Before anyone could react, the Kusa-nins neck stretched to inhuman lengths and she bit Sasuke on the neck. Naruto landed a chakra enhanced slice with his nails to the kunoichi's face, taking her face off.

However, there was a face under the face, the face of a man, "My name is Orochimaru." the man introduced himself, "I have given you the means to become more powerful Sasuke-kun, if you want to see me again, and unlock this power, survive and pass this exam. Another 'test' will be coming soon, make me proud." After that Orochimaru melted into the tree and disappeared.

Sasuke began screaming in unbearable pain, hands clutched to his head. Sakura attempted to console him, and ease his pain, but to no avail. Sasuke soon passed out.

"Naruto. Sasuke has fainted, what do we do know?" Sakura said.

Naruto appeared holding a limp Hinata in his arms, "Yeah, Hinata is out cold as well. We should find somewhere defensible and wait for them to wake up."

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Naruto and Sakura laid Sasuke and Hinata's bodies under a partially uprooted tree. They took turns standing watch and caring for their two incapacitated teammates. Sasuke was running one hell of a fever and his face was constantly contorted in pain. Hinata, however, was simply sleeping peacefully. Sakura and Naruto took the time to set up a few traps that hopefully would keep some enemies at bay while Team 7 recovered.

Sakura was on watch duty when things went bad. The team from Oto showed up.

"Wake up Sasuke. We want to fight him." the leader who looked like a mummy said.

Was this that next test that Orochimaru was talking about. "What are you talking about? I know that Orochimaru is pulling the strings. What is his purpose?" The look on the Oto-nins' faces confirmed her suspicions. "What did you do to Sasuke-kun?"

Sakura heard as Naruto began to wake from his sleep off to the side. It was going to be a four on two, not the best of odds, but she had a lot more confidence in Naruto than she did before.

Suddenly, the Oto-nin launched themselves forward. But they stopped at their leader's command, "A trap is no good if it doesn't go unnoticed." he said as his team leapt above the pit trap and right into the real one. Sakura cut a small wire beside her which unleashed a log from above.

"Oh no! A double trap." the leader mocked as he punched the log and it shattered into a million pieces, "You're gonna have to do better than that."

However, before the Oto nin could land, Sakura heard two yells.

"Konoha Senpuu!" Rock Lee yelled as he kicked the leader in the head.

"Secret Jutsu: Thousand Needles of Death." Haku said as seemingly a thousand ice needles appeared and attempted to impale the Oto nin.

"Doton: Earth Wall." an Oto-nin yelled, he was a skinny guy decked in the camouflage the Oto team seemed to favor, the wall blocked all of the needles from Haku's attack.

Sakura watched as Naruto had completely awakened from his sleep, now it was a four on four, much better odds.

"What's going on?" Naruto asked.

"We are being attacked Naruto." Sakura said.

"Well, let's show these guys what a mistake that was." Naruto said as he cracked his knuckles. "Bushy-brows, Haku, what are you guys doing here?"

"Well you guys are my first friends, Naruto. I couldn't just set back and watch you get hurt." Haku replied.

"I have a promise to keep. Yosh!" Lee said as he winked at Sakura.

"Thanks, guys." Naruto said, "Let's rock these guys world's. Shadow Clone Jutsu!" With that a couple dozen Narutos appeared in the clearing.

The Oto-nin were beginning to have second thoughts. Haku had jutsu they had never even heard of before, and Lee was fast. And all of them could tell that the clones Naruto had made were real, not merely illusions.

"Screw this. Zankuuha!" said the Oto-nin with a t-shirt on that had "Die Die Die" written on the front of it. The forthcoming blast of wind knocked back all four of the Konoha genin and dispelled all of Naruto's clones.

"Looks like this won't be so hard." The leader said. "Zaku you take the blondie. Kin you got the girl, I'll take the green one, and Kabe you take the ice guy."

The series of one on one battles began. An none of them were beneficial to the Konoha ninjas. Naruto couldn't get close to Zaku, and every time he summoned up more clones to help, Zaku would just dispel them with that wind attack. Rock Lee fared alright against the Oto leader, but something was off about the attacks the mummy was using, even if he blocked or dodged that punches still had an effect, and Lee felt his balance wavering and his vision blurring. Sakura was completely outclassed and never stood a chance, she was immediately caught by the hair by Kin. Haku was by far having the best time of the group, but he wasn't making any progress. While Haku had Kabe trapped in the Crystal Ice Mirrors, the Oto-nin simply encased himself in a small dome of stone.

"Looks like this is getting no where." Haku said. He looked over to Rock Lee to se that he had unleashed the Lotus, and was getting ready to pile drive the Oto team leader into the ground. However, the ground came up and cushioned the blow. Haku looked to see that, the one named Zaku had his palms to the ground and the soil seemed to raise from him.

"No way…" Lee and Haku said in unison.

"You're lucky I saved your ass, Dosu." Zaku said as he parried some blows from Naruto, who had used the distraction to gain an upper hand in their battle.

"What a terrifying technique." Dosu said, "So much damage even after being cushioned. Well now it's my turn." Haku had no choice as he watched Lee get pounded into submission and unconsciousness. If Haku left to help, then this Kabe would be allowed to reenter the fray, and that could be bad, his best choice was just to keep hi man occupied and hope Naruto could do something. However, it was Sakura who came to Lee's rescue, after Kin had been berating her about her hair, Sakura had cut it off with a kunai to free herself and went after Dosu. Naruto had actually managed to beat Zaku somewhat and had now turned his attention to Dosu as well. However he blocked her attacks easily, and immediately began beating her. Zaku managed to recover and had restarted his battle with Naruto. However, everything stopped as a feeling of dread filled everyone. They looked at Sasuke's prone body and everyone could see the sickly purple chakra pouring off of him. As he stood and everyone could get a look at him, strange black marks were covering half of his body. He looked down at a bruised and bloody Sakura.

"Who did this to you Sakura?" Sasuke asked.

"Who cares? You're going to be dead anyway, Zankuukyokuha!" Zaku said as he launched an air blast several times larger than any he had before. When the dust cleared, no on was in front of Zaku, "Heh, blew him away."

"Blew who away?" Sasuke asked as he backhanded Zaku into a tree. Sasuke then rushed and caught Zaku by both arms and planted a foot in Zaku's back, "You're very proud of these arms aren't you?" Then Sasuke increased the pressure as two sickening, audible snaps filled the clearing and Zaku released a howl of immense pain.

Sasuke then looked at Dosu, "You're next, I hope your more of a challenge." However, before Sasuke could make good on his threat, Sakura embraced him from behind, tears in her eyes.

"Please… stop…" Sakura said between sobs. The marks retreated from Sasuke's body and he collapsed on the floor.

"You're strong, Sasuke. We cannot defeat you at this time." Dosu said. "I leave our Earth Scroll as a gift of truce. We will leave in peace. Kabe gather Zaku. We are leaving."

Haku let his Crystal Ice Mirrors dissipate and let the Oto-nin disappear after leaving their scroll. Haku picked the scroll up and strolled over to Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto presenting it to them. Naruto took it.

"Thanks." Naruto said.

"No problem, my team already has an Earth Scroll. And, I need to get Lee out of here." Haku said as he picked up Lee's body. "Good luck, I hope to see you at the end." With that, Haku disappeared with Lee slung over his shoulder.

Team 7 spent the next day resting and recovering from their battles, and then they made a beeline straight for the tower. The made it almost without a problem. The ran back into the team of the Ame-nin that had attacked them first as the exam began. However, the team he was part of used almost nothing but genjutsu, a bad match for Sakura's genjutsu prowess and Hinata's Byakugan. The fight listed barely a minute before Naruto and Sasuke had knocked the Ame team out and taken their Heaven Scroll, before entering the tower with two and a half days to spare.

Team 7 entered the tower, and stared at an inscription on the wall. It read, "If you lack Heaven, seek wisdom, be prepared. If you lack Earth, run in the fields, seek advantages." Taking it as a clue to open the scrolls, Naruto and Sakura did just that. After being opened, the scrolls summoned none other than Iruka.

"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto yelled, "What are you doing here?"

Iruka smiled at Naruto, "I'm here to inform you that you have passed the Second Exam, congratulations."

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A/N

For those of you who were wondering about the fourth member of Team Minato, your question has been answered. Might Guy takes the honors for being the fourth member.

Also, I know at least a few of you were looking forward to the Exams arch, I hope I'm doing it justice. Anyway, the Next chapter will hold the preliminaries for the Third exam.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Additional Notes: I have now added a forum "Four Man Squads, The Forum" (yeah I'm not good with naming things). Anyway, I hope to use the forum as a place to answer questions. I know that it might be frustrating to have to have to wait until I post another chapter to wait for me to answer questions. So I hope to see you on the forums so I can answer any questions you may have there.


	6. Chapter 6 The Preliminaries

Four Man Squads

Chapter 6 - Preliminaries

Iruka proceeded to explain to Team 7 the motto written on the wall in the room they were in. After the explanation and more congratulations on passing the second exam, Iruka informed them that they had roughly two days before they could leave the tower since the second exam was still going on. Iruka also informed them that the tower had bedrooms, training areas, and a cafeteria, so they had all the resources they needed over the next couple of days. Iruka then disappeared into a cloud of smoke, leaving Team 7 to explore the tower on their own.

"Whew, time for some rest and relaxation." Naruto half-shouted.

"When do you ever relax?" Sakura asked exasperatedly. Then she looked at the state of herself, "I need a bath."

"I-I wouldn't mind one m-myself." Hinata agreed.

With that, Team 7 took off deeper into the tower, looking for the dorms. After a few minutes of exploration they found a sign that lead them to the section of the tower they were looking for.

A couple hours later, Hinata sighed as she lowered herself into her bath. The fight with the person she now found out was Orochimaru left her beat up, and she was still sore. The hot water washing over all of her muscles felt really good. She took a bar of lavender scented soap and began washing away the dirt, blood, and grime of the last few days. As she cleaned up she began to lose herself in thought.

_I wonder how many teams passed? I'm sure Neji-niisan and Haku-san passed. I wonder how many of the rookies will pass, we haven't seen anyone since we got here. What's the next exam going to be?_

Hinata's thoughts kept circling around, wondering about who else in their class might have passed and worrying about the next stage of the exam. She was so lost in thought, she barely heard the knock at her door.

"Hinata-chan!" it was Naruto's voice, "Obito-sensei is here and he wants to talk to us! Are you done with your bath?"

Hinata shook herself away from her thoughts, "H-hai, Naruto-kun! I'll be there in a second."

Hinata stepped out of the bath and quickly dried herself off and brushed out her hair. She then returned to her bedroom proper, and slipped back into her dirty clothes. Sadly, they didn't have any changes of clothes. She then opened the door to the room she had taken and saw the rest of her team standing in the hallway with Obito. Sakura apparently just exited the bath as well, as her hair was still dripping water in places. She also noticed that Sasuke and Naruto had probably at least taken a shower as each of them had a wet sheen to their hair. She also noticed that Obito was carrying a bundle as he started to unpack it as he addressed them.

"First things first, congratulations are in order. I was reasonably confident you guys would pass to this point, but it's nice to see you are doing well. Also, as soon as I was told you all had passed I figured you'd might want these." Obito then tossed them each a smaller package from the larger bundle he had. Hinata opened her package to reveal another set of the clothes she was wearing, she looked to see that's what everyone had received.

"I know the second exam is a rough one, so I thought you would all appreciate a clean change of clothes." Obito said.

"Thank you, sensei." Sakura said, "This is quite possibly the best thing you could have done."

"Heh, I figured you and Hinata would like it the most. Anyway, go get changed and then we'll continue our conversation." Obito instructed.

Everyone turned and walked back into their rooms. Hinata changed quickly and then reunited with her group, everyone was just wearing cleaner versions of the same thing except Naruto, who's color scheme was now a very dark shade of orange and black. Hinata stifled a giggled, _He'll always like orange, I guess._

"Alright, now that it seems you are all cleaned up, I guess I should tell you that you are no longer going to be working as a team." Obito said.

"What? Why? We're an amazing team!" Naruto shouted.

"Tradition, Naruto. The first two tests are for stealth and teamwork. The last test is always about individual skill, this is to weed out those who got carried into the final round by strong teammates." Obito said.

"What kind of test is it?" Sasuke asked.

"Simple, single elimination tournament." Obito replied, "You lose you're out. You win you get to keep fighting."

"So, does only the winner become a chuunin?" Sakura asked.

"No, each fight is analyzed, and those determined to show the traits of a chuunin, win or lose, are promoted." Obito explained, "There's the possibility that all of the participants in the Third exam will pass, or none of them will. However, the drive to win is still there, because that means you get another chance to show off your skills. But, I'm afraid I have some bad news."

"W-what's that, sensei?" Hinata asked.

"Even though the test isn't over yet you all are the fifth team to pass. A Suna team has passed along with Haku's team, Team 8, and another Konoha team. Simply, there's going to be too many participants for the third exam if this keeps up and there will be a preliminary exam." Obito continued, "That is one round of the tournament, where if you lose you stay a genin, and if you win you get the chance to prove yourself."

"What? That's stupid! We all passed, so we should all get the chance!" Naruto shouted.

"I know, I don't like it either." Obito replied, "But dignitaries from all over the five nations come for these matches, and we can't bore them with an excessive amount of bouts, or with bouts which might prove uneventful. It's more about politics than it is about fairness."

"That sucks…" Naruto said.

"Just means you can't lose, idiot." Sasuke smirked.

"Same goes for you!" Naruto shouted back.

Suddenly, Sasuke dropped to the floor in pain. Obito rushed over and saw the curse mark on his neck, "What happened?! This is a curse mark!"

Sakura, Naruto, and Hinata all quickly explained what transpired in the Forest of Death and their encounter with Orochimaru.

"Four genin survived an encounter with Orochimaru? You all are either much more talented than I gave you credit for, extremely lucky, or, most likely, both. Anyway, Sasuke you should consider dropping from the exam, from what I know that thing will flare up anytime you try to use chakra."

"No!" Sasuke hissed, "I cannot and will not fail here."

Obito looked down at his younger cousin, concern etched across his face, "Alright, it's your decision. However, I want you to know this, if that thing looks like it's going to get out of control, I will interfere with your match personally. We need to seal that thing, but the only person I can think of to help probably won't be able to help us until after the preliminaries at the earliest. This means you won't have access to jutsu or the Sharingan, Sasuke. You sure you can to it?"

"I'll have to." Sasuke replied.

With that, Obito dismissed his team and advised them to get a must rest as they could, they needed to be at top form for the next stage, all the opponent's were guaranteed to be strong. He wished them luck then disappeared.

Hinata went back into her room and finished grooming herself before heading to the cafeteria to grab a bite to eat with the rest of her team. She was concerned about everyone, but especially Sasuke. While they weren't exactly close, Hinata was a kind soul that couldn't stand to see others in pain, and with the preliminaries on the horizon and Sasuke not having access to most of his arsenal of moves, Hinata was worried about his wellbeing. She just hoped the next couple of days passed uneventfully.

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Hinata's wish almost came true. The only bump was a chance encounter with one Neji Hyuga. As Hinata and Naruto had been walking to the cafeteria they had bumped into Neji, apparently on his way back.

"Hello, Hinata-sama." Neji greeted formally.

"Hello, Neji-niisan." Hinata replied in the same tone. Naruto just looked on.

"I was hoping to have a chance to speak to you before the third exam." Neji answered, "You are not a good shinobi, Hinata. You should quit now."

Naruto was outraged, but Hinata just seemed to stand there and take the abuse. Naruto was about to say something, but Neji continued his rant, "You are too kind, you wish for harmony and avoid conflict, you agree with others, never resisting, and you have no confidence in yourself. I always feel your inferiority, that's why I think it's better if you stay a genin. However, the Chuunin Exams can only be taken by four man squads. You couldn't turn down your teammates' requests and unwillingly entered the exams, is this correct?"

"N-no." Hinata stammered, "I-I wanted… I wanted to change myself… do it for myself."

"Hinata-sama, it is as I thought, you are a spoiled brat of the main family. People cannot change themselves." Neji resumed berating Hinata, "Losers are losers, their personality and strength will not change. Because people cannot change, differences are born, and titles such as genius and loser are created. Looks, brains, ability, size, personality… All people judge and are judged in these values. Based on these unchangeable factors, people discriminate and are discriminated against, and they suffer within their means. It's just like how the fact that you are from the main house and I'm from the branch house cannot be changed."

If Naruto was angry before, he was now standing beside himself. Naruto wanted nothing more than to let into this guy, to shut him up, to bash his little prick skull in. However, Naruto still couldn't get in a word, and Hinata was almost on the verge of tears. Neji continued the verbal beat down, "I have seen through many things with my eyes. So, I know that you are just acting strong, but deep inside you just want to run away from here." Neji paused briefly, and Hinata started to say something in denial. However, her comeback was short lived as she stared into Neji's now active Byakugan. Neji again resumed his speech, "You cannot fool my eyes. Against my pressure just now, you're eyes floated to the upper left, a sign of recalling past memories. After that, they floated to the lower right, a sign of imagining physical and mental pain. So basically, you are recalling everything that has led to this point and are imagining the results if you were to fight me or a number of people here right now. You're imagining your failure."

Hinata brought her arms up in front of her and seemed to begin chewing on her finger, or so it seemed. Naruto was all of about two seconds from knocking Neji into fucking next week. Neji continued, "The action of raising your arms means you are trying to create a wall between you and I, to put distance between us so I can't figure out how you are truly feeling, because everything I have said is correct. Furthermore, the act of touching your finger to your lips is a personality trait revealing a disturbance, it's a defense mechanism to soften nerves and worries. So haven't you already realized? You cannot change your…" Neji never got to finish his sentence.

"YOU CAN!!" Naruto screamed at the top of his lungs, "Stop deciding things about people, you prick! You are lucky that we cannot attack each other now, cause I'd hurt you so much your grandchildren's grandchildren would feel it! Hinata, you don't have to listen to this. I know how strong you are, this dick doesn't know anything."

Hinata looked at her crush and replied, "Th-thank you, Naruto-kun. You are right, I-I no longer wish to run away. Neji-niisan, I will not forfeit, t-to you or anyone else."

Neji looked at Hinata one more time, carefully analyzing her under the gaze of his Byakugan, "Fine, I tried. I'm no longer responsible if something happens to you."

Hinata and Naruto watched as Neji disappeared around the corner. Naruto spoke up as Neji left, "Man, that guy was an ass. I hope I face him in the prelims, he needs to be taken down a peg or two. I thought Sasuke was a complete jerkass, but geez…"

"Th-thanks again, Naruto-kun." Hinata said as she smiled at Naruto.

"Eh, what for?" Naruto replied, dumbfounded.

"F-for helping me regain my c-courage, Neji-niisan had me rattled until you said the things you did. But, please do not fault Neji-niisan too much. While I may carry the burden of the main house, Neji is lost in the differences and bickering of the main family and the branch family" Hinata answered.

Naruto grinned and rubbed the back of his head, "I was nothing, I couldn't just sit back and let him belittle my friend like that. Anyway, I'm sure Sasuke and Sakura are waiting for us, and I'm starved. Let's go."

"H-hai." Hinata agreed as she followed Naruto on towards the cafeteria.

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Luckily, the encounter with Neji was the only rough spot for Team 7 before the beginning of the Preliminaries. At the end of the fifth day, all the teams were assembled in a large room, there was nothing in the room except for an observation balcony and a large statue depicting a set of arms with the hands locked into the ram seal.

Sakura took a quick stock of the teams surrounding her. Out of the 26 teams that started the second test 7 passed. Team 7 of course, then there were the four teams Obito told them about, then there was Team 10 and the Sound ninja team that attacked them earlier. _I can't believe all twelve of the rookies made it, _Sakura thought.

"Hokage-sama will now explain the third test, listen up." Anko addressed the passing teams.

"Before I explain the third exam, there is something else I'd like you to know." the Hokage started explaining, "It concerns the true reason for these exams. Why do we have the allied countries taking the exam together? 'To promote friendship among countries' and 'to raise the level of shinobi' are the politically correct reasons for the exam. However, the true reason for these exams is that it's a replacement for war among the allied nations."

"What does that mean?" Tenten asked.

"If you go back in time, the allied countries were once enemies." Sarutobi continued the explanation, "Each fought over who would rule. In order to prevent wasteful fighting and death, the stage that these countries chose for battle eventually evolved into the Chuunin Exams."

"What's that got to do with us? Isn't this a test to determine who should be a Chuunin." Shiroi asked.

"It is a fact that this exam is to decide those who have the traits to become chuunin." the Hokage resumed, "However, there is another side, where each countries shinobi risk their lives to protect their countries prestige. Leaders and important people from all over the allied lands will be in attendance at the third exam, most of our missions come from these people. These people will be there to watch your fights, and if the strength of a country is clear through the exam, then that country will receive more missions, and if a country is seen as weak they will lose clients. Also, it will signal to enemy countries that 'our village has this much power,' and thus send a political message to outsiders."

"That's all well and good, but why do we have to risk our lives in battle?" Kiba shouted.

"The strength of the country is the strength of the village." Sarutobi countered, "The strength of the village is the strength of the shinobi. Finally, a shinobi's true strength is born only through life and death battle. This exam is a place to see each country's strength, and to show off your own strength. It only has meaning because lives are at risk."

"Then why do you say stuff about 'friendship.'" Tenten asked.

"As I said, I wanted you to understand the true reason for these exams. By losing lives and establishing a balance, this is friendship in the world of ninjas. Before we start the third exam, I will tell you one more thing. This is not just s test, this is a life or death battle with your dreams and your country's prestige on the line."

"I don't care." Gaara answered, "Just hurry up and tell us what this life or death battle entails."

"Yes, I'd like to explain the third exam, but…" the Hokage said, then a flash appeared before the examinees.

"cough…cough…I'm sorry Hokage-sama, please allow me to explain." the newcomer said and Sarutobi nodded in approval. Then the man turned to face the genin. The man looked very sick, like he could fall over dead at any moment, "I am Hayate Gekkou, before we take the third exam, I need you all to take a preliminary test to decide who takes the final exam."

"Preliminary? What do you mean?" Shikamaru shouted in a rare burst of emotion.

"I don't understand this." Kaen yelled, "Why can't everyone take the final exam?"

Hayate explained, "Too many people passed the first and second exam this year, we have to thin the numbers according to Chuunin Exam rules." While the rest of the genin were shocked, Team 7 merely stood there, having heard this before. "There will be many dignitaries at the final exam, and with this many people the fights could take too long, and it would end up boring the dignitaries. Anyway, we are starting the preliminaries immediately, so if there are any of you who aren't feeling well or otherwise wish to quit, you must do so now."

Two hands raised to the air, "Um.. I'm going to quit." the first one belonged to Kabuto.

"I quit as well." the second hand belonged to the girl Sakura recognized as Chiyoko Guujin. There was a small moment of shock as no one could believe that someone would quit after getting this far.

"Very well." Hayate said, "You may either leave now or you can stay and watch the matches." With that, Kabuto left the exam area while Chiyoko took a place up on the observation balcony.

Suddenly Sakura see Sasuke start trembling, _The curse mark must be acting up again._ Sakura grabbed Sasuke's shoulder and was about to say something when Sasuke met her with a look.

"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura mumbled.

"I know what you're thinking, Sakura. You can't tell anyone else, this is something I have to do. I will not let you stand in my way." Sasuke said firmly, "If you take this away from me, I will never forgive you."

That shut Sakura up, as much as she wanted to make him see reason, she couldn't stand against the one she loved.

"cough…cough….Now, let's start the preliminary. This will consist of one-on-one fights, you will basically fight as if in a real life confrontation. Since we now have exactly 26 entrants, there will be 13 matches, and the winners will advance to the third exam. There are basically no rules…cough…cough…The fight continues until one of you is dead, unconscious, or forfeits. However, if I decide that a winner has clearly been established, I will end the match to prevent unnecessary deaths… cough…cough….Now for the thing that will control your fates…" Hayate explained. Suddenly, one of the panels in the wall above the sign statue moved to reveal a giant television screen.

"Cough…cough…This electronic scoreboard will randomly determine the contestants for each match. I know it's sudden, but for the first fight…" Hayate finished as the scoreboard began to cycle through names before coming to a stop.

"Sasuke Uchiha vs. Yoroi Akado!"

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Sasuke smirked. At least he wouldn't have to wait long to get his kicks in. However, Sasuke's happiness was cut short when a new wave of pain shot through his body from the curse mark. He grimaced a little, but refused to grasp at the pain radiating from his neck.

"Now…cough… we will be starting the first match. Everyone except the two contestants move to the observation balcony please." Hayate instructed.

Obito stopped right before he passed Sasuke, "Remember what I said, if it looks like the curse is gonna break loose, I'm stopping your match."

"I know. I'll find a way around it." Sasuke whispered back. Obito nodded and continued on his way. _So I can't use my chakra, I'm limited to taijutsu maneuvers. This could get nasty._ Sasuke thought.

"Cough…Are you both ready?" Hayate asked, both genin nodded, "The begin."

"Are you sure you're ready for this." Yoroi taunted Sasuke while building his chakra.

"Yeah, positive." Sasuke said as he whipped out a kunai. Yoroi the proceeded to chuck three shuriken at Sasuke with a fair amount of force. Sasuke timed a swing of his kunai so that he deflected each of the kunai right back at Yoroi. However, as Sasuke did this he felt another wave of pain and collapsed onto the floor. Sasuke barely had time or the wherewithal to dodge a massive fist from Yoroi that dug into the floor. Sasuke jumped at the sudden opening given him by Yoroi's arm and quickly executed a textbook armbar. However, before Sasuke could finish the maneuver and break Yoroi's arm at the elbow, Yoroi grabbed Sasuke's chest and suddenly it felt like all the strength had be drained from Sasuke's body. Sasuke lost his grip on Yoroi's arm and caught a blow to the torso for his troubles. As Sasuke laid where we was getting his wits back, he heard a yell.

"Sasuke-kun, watch out." the yell was Sakura's. Suddenly, Sasuke remembered he was in a match and sat bolt upright, and he got to have a meet and greet Yoroi's hand. Sasuke again felt like all the strength was being pulled out of him.

"You… my chakra…" Sasuke said weakly.

"Heh, so you finally noticed." Yoroi replied

"Ugh… Damn…You." Sasuke said as he managed the strength to kick Yoroi away.

"Hah, so you still have energy left?" Yoroi was amused.

"Are you really Sasuke?! Is that the best you can do?!" Sasuke looked up to see Naruto yelling at him. He happened to be standing beside Rock Lee. _Wait a second… I think I have a shot._ Sasuke thought as he remembered the fight with Lee.

"You don't have time for sight seeing! I'll suck up all your chakra!" Yoroi yelled as he charged Sasuke. Sasuke took a page out of Lee's book and landed a swift upwards kick to Yoroi's chin. Then Sasuke leapt behind Yoroi.

"However, from here it's all original." Sasuke said, "It's over."

"Shadow of the Dancing Leaf?" Yoroi stated in amazement.

"Take this." Sasuke said as he was getting ready to start his attack. Before he could make good on his threat, he felt the curse mark pulse and begin to spread throughout his body. _Not here, not now. _Sasuke thought, _I can't let this thing control me._ Sasuke, through sheer force of will, forced the curse mark into receding.

Sasuke regained his trademark smirk, "Here it comes." Sasuke then launched a kick at Yoroi's midsection. Yoroi easily blocked it.

"Not enough." Yoroi taunted Sasuke. However, Yoroi was in no position to block the vicious backhand that hit him across the face, then the follow up punch to the gut that drove him faster to the ground.

Right before Yoroi and Sasuke hit the ground, Sasuke yelled, "There's more!" then flipped to deliver a punishing blow to Yoroi's midsection as soon as he hit the ground. "Shishi Rendan!" The force of the attack made Yoroi cough up blood as he passed out. Sasuke was also spent and sprawled on the ground. However, he managed to stand up.

Hayate took stock of the situation and quickly made his decision. "Winner of the first match, Sasuke Uchiha."

Sasuke felt himself start to collapse only to be propped up by someone behind him.

"Well that certainly was a good show." Obito said as he grinned down at his cousin. "I'm proud, I saw how you forced the curse mark to retreat."

Soon a medical ninja came up to the Uchihas, "Sasuke Uchiha, let us treat your wounds."

"That's unnecessary. I'll take care of him." The med-nin nodded and walked away at Obito's words. Obito bent down to where he could whisper so only Sasuke could hear. "Plus, my friend is here to help us seal your curse mark."

Sasuke looked up at his older cousin, "Wait till after the prelims, I want to watch the matches." Then Sasuke grunted in pain as the curse mark shot him with more pain.

"Looks like it's not giving us much of a choice. Now off we go." Obito said. Then both he and Sasuke disappeared. Obito, then reappeared at the balcony with the rest of Team 7, "I'm sorry if I miss any of your matches, but I have to take care of Sasuke, good luck all of you." Then Obito disappeared for good.

"Well…cough…cough…We will announce the second match." Hayate said as the screen began to shuffle through names again, this time coming to rest at…

"Kin Tsuchi vs. Hinata Hyuga"

------------------------------------

"Good luck, Hinata." Sakura offered her encouragement.

"Yeah, get out there and kick some ass!" Naruto said enthusiastically.

"Th-thank you Sakura, Naruto-kun." Hinata said as she turned to descend the steps.

Hinata got down to the floor to face the kunoichi from Oto. While Hinata had saw them before the first exam, and had got an explanation of what had happened during the second, she had still been unconscious when the Oto-nin attacked Team 7 in the Forest of Death. So she really had no first-hand experience with her opponent, which made her slightly nervous.

"Heh, all you Konoha girls are weak, either you care too much about appearances, or your shy, wimpy little schoolgirls." Kin mocked Hinata.

"Match number two, Kin Tsuchi versus Hinata Hyuga. Are you both ready?" Hayate asked.

"H-hai." Hinata answered.

"Of course." Kin replied.

"Then, begin." Hayate instructed. Kin immediately launched a couple of senbon needles at Hinata, while Hinata had activated her Byakugan. Hinata heard a chime as the needles flew, she could see that there were bells attached to the senbon. It was a simple but effective trick, soon Kin would be firing some needles with bells and some with out to cause confusion. However, she had not counted on the abilities of the Byakugan.

As Kin threw her next set of needles, Hinata heard a sound from behind her. While the sound did it's job of distracting Hinata, Hinata could still see the thrown senbon coming at her and dodged.

"Hmm… so it seems that you have some skills after all. But, that simple trick isn't the only thing I have." Kin then pulled the strings on the bells again. Hinata gasped as her vision began to blur. _A genjutsu? _Hinata thought, _This might be my chance, I have to pretend that this affects me, it's obviously meant to obscure the vision._

Kin then through yet another barrage of senbon needles, and grinned as this time they found home in Hinata's body. Kin then kept peppering Hinata with needles. Hinata just moved enough to prevent Kin from hitting anything vital, she had to wait for her chance.

"COME ON HINATA! FIGHT BACK!" Hinata could hear Naruto's scream. She could see him clearly as well, thanks to the Byakugan her eyes could see through the genjutsu. _Thank you, Naruto-kun._

Kin finally made her fatal mistake. She pulled out a kunai and began silently stalking her way towards Hinata. "You are no match for me. Give up now and I won't kill you." Kin taunted. However as soon as she pulled up her kunai to make good on her threat, Hinata struck out in a flash.

"Jyuuken!" Hinata had landed a punch straight to the gut of Kin, and the Oto kunoichi had began coughing up blood. "I-I'm sorry, but I can't fail in front of my Naruto-kun." Hinata said softly, "Good night." Then Hinata slammed a Jyuuken strike to the back of the Oto-nin's head, Kin was out cold.

Hayate took charge there, "Winner of the second match, Hinata Hyuga." The med-nins then rushed out to attend to the injuries of the fighters.

"Hinata-sama, are you okay?" A med-nin asked.

"Y-yes, I'm fine. She d-didn't hit anything vital, I made sure of that. P-please attend to her, I tried to make sure I didn't do any major damage, but sometimes even the most careful blows can be disastrous for the person on the receiving end." Hinata said as she began to walk up to her team.

"Way to go, Hinata-chan. I knew you could do it." Naruto yelled as Hinata came back up the stairs.

"Yeah, congratulations Hinata. That was a good move, acting like you were under the genjutsu, but you took a lot of senbon hits, are you okay, I could heal you." Sakura offered.

"N-no, thanks. You need your chakra for your fight, Sakura." Hinata replied.

"Cough…Now for round 3." Hayate recaptured everyone's attention as Kin was escorted from the arena. The computer began the now familiar process of randomly choosing names.

"Shikamaru Nara vs. Yuurei Tsurugi."

"Troublesome…" Shikamaru stated as he began trudging to face the Konoha genin dressed almost exactly the same as Yoroi.

Hayate gestured to both the genin now in the center of the arena, "Are you ready?" Both merely nodded, "Begin."

"Unlike Yoroi, I don't plan on losing here kid." Yuurei said as he made a few seals and came charging at Shikamaru.

"Bah, such a pain…" Shikamaru replied. He simply dodged as Yuurei tried to hit him with what looked like a chakra charged fist. However, Shikamaru couldn't quite keep up with Yuurei and was forced to block an attack. Shikamaru was caught off guard when Yuurei's fist passed right through Shikamaru's block and connected with his jaw.

"How'd you like it, I can make my fist pass through any solid object. Blocking me will do you no good." Yuurei taunted.

"What a drag…" Shikamaru said as he retreated backwards, until he felt his back hit a wall, _Perfect…_

Yuurei vaulted at Shikamaru to attempt a telling blow to the head just to have Shikamaru dodge at the last minute. Shikamaru then launched his attack.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu!" Shikamaru connected his shadow to his opponent's, taking control of his opponent's actions.

"What the hell, I can't move." Yuurei said.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu forces my opponent to mimic my movements while my shadow is entwined with the targets. So I control your movements." Shikamaru stated. "It's troublesome, but it's time to end this match." Shikamaru then did a forward dive into a roll. However, Yuurei never got to the roll, He ended up diving head first into the wall behind Shikamaru and was knocked out.

"Winner of the third match, Shikamaru Nara." Hayate got out before starting a coughing fit. Med-nin quickly gathered up Yuurei and the preliminaries got back under way. "Cough… now for match four."

The randomly selected match couldn't have came out any better for Naruto…

"Neji Hyuga vs. Naruto Uzumaki."

---------------------------------

Naruto damn near jumped from the observation balcony to the arena floor. He watched as Neji calmly made his way down to the floor, already confident in his victory.

"Round four, Neji Hyuga versus Naruto Uzumaki. Are you ready." Hayate asked.

"You bet." Naruto said through gritted teeth. He couldn't wait to get his hands on Neji.

"Hai." was Neji's simple, stoic reply.

"Cough… begin." Hayate intoned the beginning of the battle. Neji assumed a stance very similar to that of Hinata, and Naruto knew that a close range contest probably wasn't the best move. So he made the familiar sign for his trademark technique.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as four clones popped into existence. Then Naruto and each of his clones drew a kunai.

"I see, but, there's only one true body." Neji said as he observed Naruto's actions.

"Stop acting tough." Naruto replied.

"If you're going to come, then come" Neji answered.

"Stop disrespecting me!" All the Narutos shouted as they started their charge.

The resulting action looked more like some overly complicated dance rather than a fight as Neji deftly moved between all of the Narutos' attacks and successfully dispelled each clone.

As Neji straightened back up he began to taunt Naruto, "I've heard about you Naruto Uzumaki, the prankster who's biggest dream is to become Hokage. But, it's impossible with your talent. Talent is decided at birth. You could say everything is decided when a person is born…"

"Why in the hell do you keep deciding things for other people like that?!" Naruto shouted.

"Then are you saying you can become Hokage through hard work?" Neji asked, "Only a handful of shinobi have the power and talent to become Hokage. Look closer at reality. Those that become Hokage are born into that destiny. You don't become it by trying, it is decided by destiny. People must live within their own unchangeable flow. Only one thing unites everyone's destinies, death."

"Gods! That's all you talk about is destiny! Who cares about destiny or fate?! I'll make my own destiny!" Naruto shouted as he made a staggering more amount of clones.

Neji simply looked at all the clones, "I'm not stupid. I can see through your attacks."

"I told you before, stop deciding things for everyone!" Naruto yelled as his multitude of clones began the attack. Neji, still executing the artful series of dodges that made him appear as though he was executing a dance, made his way to a Naruto that was holding back and not attacking.

"Found you." Neji said as he landed a Jyuuken strike to the midsection of Naruto. "I told you it was useless." Neji said as Naruto coughed up blood.

"And, I told you to stop deciding things for everyone." Naruto replied as he disappeared in a poof a smoke.

"What?!" Neji was surprised, "No way!"

"I'm coming at you with everything I have!" Naruto shouted as he and his clones were closing in.

"I guess I'll have to try 'it.'" Neji said as he splayed his arms wide. Neji then began to pour chakra out of every tenketsu point he could manage. He still hadn't perfected the technique, but it was the only thing he had that could compensate. "Kaiten!" Neji then spun his body around like a top. The resulting attack, an incomplete Heavenly Spin, was enough to dispel most of Naruto's clones even though a few were still standing and one had even managed to land a blow through the spin.

"Did you think you had won?" Neji smirked as he looked at a flabbergasted Naruto.

"Damn." Naruto said as he began to pick himself up.

"It's over, you're in my field of divination." Neji stated as he shifted his stance again, "Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms."

"Oh, shit." was all Naruto could say before he felt Neji land his series of blows. Naruto felt his strength leave him as Neji closed off his tenketsu. Naruto soon collapsed as the technique was finished. It was all Naruto could do to stay on his knees.

"I have hit a good portion of the tenketsu on your body. You can no longer stand." Neji said with a smirk, "Is it painful? Stay on your knees before a power you cannot change and realize your worthlessness. Having your dreams come true from hard work is just an illusion."

Anger coursed through Naruto's body. Anger for the things Neji said and was saying. Anger for his weakness. Anger for the way he treated Hinata. Naruto slowly stood up, he was beginning to see red.

"What is this?!" Neji stated in utter shock.

"I'm not that good at giving up." Naruto said as his eyes began to change from their normal cerulean blue to blood red.

"Quit already." Neji stated, "Continuing won't change anything, I have no grudge against you…"

"Shut up! I have a grudge!" Naruto shouted.

"What do you mean?" Neji replied.

"All those things you said to Hinata, and now to me! Your ramblings about destiny! I'm gonna make you eat those words!" Naruto yelled in response. "If you're this strong, why did you have to mentally attack Hinata like that. Telling her she was a failure. Main family, branch family, I don't know about it, and I don't care. I'll never forgive pieces of shit like you who tell other people they're losers."

"All right, if you're going to go that far, I'll tell you about the Hyuga destiny of hatred." Neji said. "The Hyuga family have a special jutsu that's been passed down through the generations, a curse mark jutsu. The Caged Bird Seal is a symbol of being tied down to an inescapable destiny." Neji explained as he removed his forehead protector to expose a green seal on his for head, "One day when I was four, I had this horrible seal placed on my head. That day, a great ceremony was being held in Konoha. A leader from Kumogakure, a village that had been at way with Konoha for many years, had came to sign an alliance treaty. Everyone attended this ceremony except for one clan, the Hyuga clan. This was because that was the day, that the Heiress to the Hyuga clan turned three. It was Hinata-sama's third birthday. My father, Hizashi Hyuga, and Hinata's father, Hiashi Hyuga, were twins. However, Hiashi Hyuga was born first and he was made the heir to the clan and was allowed to the main family, while my father was relegated to a branch family. When the first daughter of the main branch turned three, I was turned into a caged bird via this seal and placed into the branch family."

"Why do you need that mark to determine who's main or branch family?" Naruto asked.

"This mark isn't simply decoration." Neji continued explaining, "This seal contains the fear of death. Through the use of a secret hand seal, a caged bird seal can easily destroy the mind of the one wearing it, death is just as easy. This curse disappears on death, sealing up the ability of the Byakugan with it. The Hyuga bloodline is highly advanced, and there are many who wish to gain our kekkei genkai. So, with this seal the branch family is allowed to live only to protect the main family. There is no disobedience allowed. It's a system to protect the Byakugan. Then, that incident occurred. My father was killed by the main family."

Naruto could only stare on in shock, and he could feel his anger start to leave him. Neji continued his story, "One night, Hinata-sama was kidnapped. Hiashi-sama promptly found and killed the intruder. It was dark and the kidnapper was wearing a mask, but do you know who the assailant was? It was the leader from Kumo. It became clear that they were here to try to steal the Byakugan from the beginning. However, this created tensions between Kumo and Konoha, and it almost degenerated into war. Konoha wanted to avoid war, so they made a deal with Kumo. Kumo demanded the body of Hiashi-sama, and Konoha agreed, the war was safely avoided. Thanks to my dad, who was killed to stand in as Hiashi-sama's corpse. The only way to escape this curse is death. They were twins, equal in strength. One was born first the other second, and their destinies were decided from just that. Just like this fight, your destiny was decided when I became your opponent. Your destiny is to lose to me."

"We'll see about that." Naruto said, "I don't know how much it hurt when your father died, but believing this is all destiny is a huge mistake."

"You're hopeless." Neji replied as he retied his forehead protector. Then in a flash he hit Naruto with a Jyuuken strike to the chest. "Examiner, it's over. Damn loser…"

"Don't… run from… me." Naruto said as he stood back up. His anger was returning now. "I won't run, I don't go back on my word. I won't lose to a coward who's always whining about destiny."

"An ignorant brat like you shouldn't lecture. People are born burdened with a destiny they cannot oppose. You could never understand the burden of living with a symbol you couldn't rid yourself of!" Neji ended his speech with a shout.

That was the last straw. Neji knew nothing of Naruto's life. He knew nothing of the looks, beatings, and overall suffering Naruto had to go through just because he was the container of the Kyuubi, essentially a symbol he couldn't rid himself of. "Yeah, I know how it feels," Naruto replied finally, anger creeping into his voice, "but, so what? Stop acting so cool, you're not the only one who's had it hard. Hinata has suffered as much as you. However, she's here trying to change herself. That's what you're here for too, the things you said to Hinata, in truth you're doing everything you can to go against destiny."

"Most of your chakra system is shut down. How will you fight?" Neji stated, "In the end, you and Hinata share the same destiny, that of failures."

"GAAAAAAAH! SHUT UP, NEJI! I'VE TOLD YOU TO STOP TRYING TO ACT LIKE YOU KNOW EVERYONE'S DESTINIES!" Naruto shouted, and He could feel the chakra returning to his body.

"No way, I shut your system down." Neji said, fear tinting his voice as he took a step backwards.

"Here I come!" Naruto shouted his intentions, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

The dozens of Narutos surrounded Neji then the real Naruto spoke up, "I don't know about the Hyuga destiny of hatred or whatever, but if it's too much for you, then you don't have to do anything anymore. When I become the Hokage, I'll change the Hyuga. Fuuton: Kamisori!" The jutsu was repeated by all the clones.

"Damn!" Neji said. "Kaiten!" However, Neji's Heavenly Spin wasn't complete and couldn't stop even half of the attacks. The blades of wind sliced through Neji's body and he collapsed from the pain.

"I underestimated your shadow clones, your main ninjutsu. How careless." Neji said as he could no longer move his body.

"Actually, I failed the graduation exam at the academy three times. Unluckily for me, the ninjutsu portion of the test was always the one I was worst at, the Clone Jutsu." Naruto said as he looked down at a now shocked Neji, "Destiny can't be changed, blah, blah, blah. Stop whining about stuff like that, since you're not a loser like me."

"Cough… Winner of Match four, Naruto Uzumaki." Hayate announced.

Naruto returned to the observation balcony to congratulations from Sakura and Hinata. Meanwhile, Hayate had began the selection for the next match.

"Um… Sakura." Hinata broke up the celebration.

Sakura turned to look up at the giant screen.

"Cough…cough… Match 5, Sakura Haruno vs. Tsuneni Tadashii." Hayate announced.

"You can do it, Sakura." Naruto encouraged, "Kick her ass."

"G-good luck, Sakura." Hinata added her own encouragement.

Sakura headed down to the arena floor to face the strawberry blonde kunoichi.

"Are you ready?" Hayate asked.

"Yes." Both girls replied in unison.

"Cough… then begin." Hayate instructed.

Sakura immediately launched into a series of hand signs. "Hell's Vision Jutsu."

Tsuneni slightly smirked as the visions of death and demons assaulted her. She made a handsign, "Release." The visions left as soon as they came.

"Genjutsu is useless against those who don't allow their fears and feelings to get in the way." Tsuneni said indifferently, "You're not going to win with that."

"Hmph." Sakura replied as she drew a kunai, "I won't lose to you, Tsuneni."

"I don't think you have much of a choice, Sakura." Tsuneni answered as she dropped into an unfamiliar taijutsu stance, "But, you may try."

Sakura rushed in to battle with Tsuneni who nimbly dodged and struck Sakura in the back of the head.

"You're outmatched Sakura. This fighting style has been specially crafted by the Tadashii's for generations. Our genealogy refuses to let us grow much larger than what you see now. We have developed a taijutsu style to take advantage of our naturally small bodies. With your skill, you will not be able to hit me." Tsuneni lectured before she went on the offensive. Sakura could barely block the onslaught. Sakura just couldn't read the movements of her opponent or figure out where the next strike was coming from. This wasn't a taijutsu system they learned in school, or even a derivative of one. Sakura couldn't help but stare in amazement at the fluid motions of the stance and the pure nimbleness and flexibility required to execute some of the maneuvers.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. But, I'm finishing this." Tsuneni said in the same monotone she always spoke in, "Ronrimaru."

If Sakura was having trouble seeing the movements earlier, she definitely wasn't seeing anything now. Tsuneni became a small blur of black and circled around Sakura. Then came the endless series of blows. Back of the head, stomach, left knee, right elbow, as soon as Sakura felt one hit another part of her was being hit. A few seconds later Sakura collapsed in a heap while Tsuneni skidded to a stop.

"It's over, Hayate-san." Tsuneni said, still without any hint of anything in her voice, she was just stating facts, like always.

Hayate did a quick inspection of Sakura and made the announcement, "Winner of match five, Tsuneni Tadashii."

"She'll be alright with some rest." Tsuneni told the med-nin as they approached, "I didn't do anything to make any lasting injuries." She then went up and joined Team 10.

"Cough… we'll now start match six." Hayate said as Sakura was picked up and allowed to rest on the balcony. The scoreboard then began the random selection.

"Haku Kousetsu vs. Kiba Inuzuka" was the readout.

------------------------

"Good luck, Haku-san." Tenten said as Haku began to make his way down to the arena floor.

"Show everyone how powerful your flames of youth are." Lee said as he clapped a hand on Haku's shoulder. Haku simply smiled in return, and quietly made his way to the floor.

"Match six…cough, cough…Haku Kousetsu versus Kiba Inuzuka, are the participants ready?" Hayate asked

Haku nodded while Kiba yelled, "Yahoo!"

"Begin." Hayate instructed.

"Please forfeit now, I have no wish to harm you or your dog." Haku asked politely.

"Like I'd do that!" Kiba yelled as he crouched and made a hand sign, "Beast Mimicry: All-Fours Jutsu." As he announced the name of his technique, Kiba gained a more animalistic appearance, he went to all fours, and his fingernails seemed to lengthen into claws.

Haku sighed, it could never be easy, "It seems you will not give up. Please forgive me for what I'm going to have to do." Haku drew a senbon into each hand.

"Here I come!" Kiba shouted as he lunged at Haku. Kiba was fast, but not quite fast enough, Haku blocked him with one hand while signing with the other.

"Secret Jutsu: Thousand Needles of Death." Haku announced the name of his technique as countless ice needles surrounded him and Kiba. Then, the needles shot with alarming velocity towards Kiba, who just barely managed to jump out of the way.

"Akamaru!" Kiba shouted as he landed and fed his dog a pill, turning the animal's white fur red. Akamaru then landed on Kiba's back, "Beast Clone Jutsu!" Akamaru turned into another Kiba.

"Hmm…" Haku looked at the two Kiba's, "Two can play at that, Water Clone Jutsu." three Hakus popped up.

The Kibas rushed into the battle, both Kiba and his dog clone seemed to have equal strength, while Haku's clones only had a tenth of Haku's strength. Needless to say, Haku held his own, but his clones were decimated.

"Take this! Gatsuuga!" Kiba yelled as he and Akamaru began spinning like drills. Haku could barely move in time. This was getting problematic, it appeared as though Haku was going to have to use his ultimate attack.

"It seems you're pretty fast, Kiba-san." Haku said as he dodged another set of Gatsuuga attacks.

"Yeah, I'm faster than you." Kiba boasted as he managed to land a Gatsuuga to Haku's back. Haku was sent flying into the wall, however he stood back up bleeding from both his back and face.

"Then I guess it's time." Haku said as he made his secret handsign, "For you to find out what speed really means. Crystal Ice Mirrors." Haku said as he entered one of the many ice mirrors that had surrounded Kiba.

"What is this?!" Kiba yelled as he could see Haku in all the mirrors. However, before he could react he was assaulted from all direction by senbon needles. "Damn, I couldn't even see him move."

"Again, forgive me for what I have to do" Haku said as he launched another volley of needles. This time, Akamaru had fallen from the attack and was no longer moving.

"Damn it! I'll get you! Tsuuga!" Kiba yelled as he began the drill technique. However, it was all in slow motion for Haku, he peppered Kiba with needles before land strong blow to the back of the Inuzuka's head, forcing Kiba's head to bounce sickeningly off the ground. Kiba was unconscious. Haku allowed the Crystal Ice Mirrors to dissipate as Hayate checked the battle.

"Cough… Winner match 6, Haku Kousetsu." Hayate announced.

"Way to go, Haku!" Naruto shouted, "I knew you could do it!"

"Yosh! Way to show of the power of youth!" Lee exclaimed at the same time.

Haku looked up to his teammates and friends, and just smiled.

"Cough… match 7..." Hayate said as the board began sorting names, "Zaku Abumi versus Temari Sukimakaze. Participants come forth."

Temari rode her giant fan down while Zaku made his way down. Both of Zaku's arms were in slings and it was hard to tell how he was going to fight.

"Both fighters ready?" Hayate asked both genin nodded their heads, "Begin."

"Yeah, it seems I can move this one." Zaku said as he brought out his right hand.

"Bah, if you don't have both arms, you aren't even going to be a challenge." Temari remarked.

"I'll show you, bitch. Zankuuha!" Zaku yelled.

"Wind Scythe Jutsu." Temari answered and her blast easily overpowered Zaku's and blew him back into the wall.

"Ouch, that hurt. Looks like I don't have a choice." Zaku said as he brought up both arms, "Zankuukyokuha!"

"Cyclone Scythe Jutsu!" Temari again answered with a wind attack of her own. Again, Zaku's attack faltered against Temari's as he was blown back for a second time.

Temari laughed, "You can't win, give up."

Zaku grunted as he stood up, "Never."

"You're loss. Wind Scythe Jutsu!" Temari replied. Zaku took the full brunt of the attack and was pressed against the wall, before he could fall, Temari came over and delivered two shots with her giant fan. One hit took out an arm with broke through the skin in a compound fracture, the other was over the head and Zaku smashed against the ground.

"Winner of match 7, Temari Sukimakaze." Hayate said.

Temari rode her fan back up to the balcony as Zaku was carried off the floor in a stretcher.

"Match 8, Shiroi Wangetsu versus Misumi Tsurugi." Hayate announced the next match. Both competitors descended to the arena floor and nodded that they were ready.

"I'm not going to go easy on you like my other teammates did. If I get any of my techniques on you, give up." Misumi said.

Shiroi just looked at his fellow leaf genin nonchalantly, "Whatever."

Misumi lunged at Shiroi who nimbly dodged, retreated a few feet and whipped out a scroll, reached in and pulled out a katana.

"You know that stuff about techniques you said." Shiroi said, "You wanna give up now?"

"So you got a sword, what are you gonna do?" Misumi mocked.

"Dance of Roses: Orange." Shiroi said as he flashed around Misumi, gashes opening up in various points of Misumi's body. Misumi almost collapsed due to his injuries.

"This was the weakest of my techniques. Do you still wish to continue?" Shiroi asked.

"Damn you!" Misumi yelled as he lunged for Shiroi again.

"Dance of Roses: Yellow." This time Shiroi's blade took on a light yellow hue as he seemingly walked through Misumi. Then there was a yellow flash as more wounds appeared on Misumi and this time he did collapse under his injuries.

"He's not getting up. I cut almost all of the tendons connecting his muscles to his bones." Shiroi informed Hayate.

"Cough…cough, winner of match 8, Shiroi Wangetsu." Hayate informed the crowd. Again, another genin had to be carried out on a stretcher.

"Now for the ninth match." Hayate said as the computer again did its thing. It came to a stop on two names.

"Gaara of the Desert vs. Rock Lee."

----------------------------

"Yosh!" Rock Lee exclaimed, "Time to let the flames of my youth burn brightly!"

"Lee!" Guy shouted at his student, "I've come upon some information everyone else has missed."

"Yes, Guy-sensei." Lee replied as he gave a salute.

"That gourd is suspicious." Guys said, and had noticed Lee had whipped out a pen and pad, "Stop taking notes, you won't be able to look at them when the fight starts. Alright, Lee, show them the power of your youthfulness."

"Yosh!" Lee shouted as he launched himself over the railing of the balcony and landed on the arena floor. Gaara appeared on the floor in a whirl of sand.

"Match nine, Gaara of the Desert vs. Rock Lee. Are you ready?" Hayate asked.

"Yosh!" Lee exclaimed making a fist.

"Hmph!" Gaara grunted.

"Begin." Hayate said before coughing up a lung.

The first attack of the match was a Gaara shooting the cork of his gourd at Rock Lee, who promptly caught it.

"There's no need to get antsy." Lee said as he caught the cork and then launched into his own series of attacks. "Konoha Senpuu!" Lee yelled as he made a spinning kick to Gaara's head, only to have it blocked by sand. Lee then continued in a series of high-speed taijutsu maneuvers, only to have all of his attacks blocked by the sand in the gourd. Suddenly, Lee had to dodge a blast of sand from behind him. The wave of sand chased Lee doggedly across the arena until Lee launched himself on top of the ram-sign statue.

"Lee! Take them off!" Guy yelled.

Lee looked at his sensei dumbfounded, "But, Guy-sensei, that's for a time when I must protect many precious people, isn't it?"

"It's okay, I allow it." Guy shouted in return.

Lee laughed a little bit before taking off his leg warmers to reveal two sets of weights. "Alright, now I can move easier." Lee said as he released the weights and let them drop to the ground. The weights landed in massive explosions and left craters on the ground.

"Lee! Go!" Guy ordered. Lee smirked as he launched his attacks anew. In a flash, Lee landed behind Gaara and started another series of blows, each attack getting closer and closer to landing. Lee was beginning to outrun Gaara's defense. Finally, Lee landed a downward spin kick on top of Gaara's head.

"We're just getting started." Lee said as he skidded to a stop away from Gaara.

"Lee! Explode!" Guy again shouted encouragement from the sidelines.

"Yosh!" Lee yelled as he resumed his assault. Again, Lee disappeared in a flash. Gaara turned to see where Lee went.

"Over here!" Lee yelled as he attacked from Gaara's blind side. The punch Lee launched sent Gaara sprawling across the arena floor. As Gaara stood up, Lee could tell something was wrong. Gaara's face was peeling off, it was sand falling of his face, and a sadistic smile was plastered over Gaara's face, he definitely looked like the most insane person Lee had ever met. Suddenly, the sand began to cover Gaara again and took on his skin tone and disappeared until Lee couldn't tell that it was actually sand that covered Gaara's body.

_I have no choice. _Lee thought, _To break though his defense I'm going to have to use the Lotus. _Lee looked up to Guy, who merely nodded his head in acceptance. Lee then began to unwrap the bandages around his arms. Lee than took off and landed a series of kicks aimed at propelling Gaara into the air, however, unlike one kick it took for most people, Lee had to hit Gaara multiple times to get him up to where Lee needed him to be. Finally, after achieving the correct height, Lee wrapped Gaara up in his loosened bandages. Lee then began to spin the two of them at high velocity, hurtling towards the ground, before jumping clear at the last possible instant.

"Initial Lotus!" Lee announced the name of his attack as Gaara's head drilled into the ground. However, as Lee looked back to check his opponent he noticed that the Gaara he hit was collapsing into a pile of sand. Suddenly, the real Gaara was standing behind Lee. Then, Gaara unleashed a huge wave of sand, which pushed and then crushed Lee against a wall. It took every fiber of Lee's being to dodge the incoming attacks, he was so weakened after using the Initial Lotus and opening the first of the Eight Inner Gates. Lee thought back to his days at the academy and the first few weeks of his genin career, remembering all the taunting and failed attempts to beat Neji. Then he remembered how Guy-sensei turned his life around. Suddenly, he found the strength to fight again.

"You are finished here." Gaara stated as Lee resumed his Taijutsu stance.

"Either way, this will end it." Lee said in reply.

_I can not lose here, _Lee thought, _This is the time I prove my nindo. _"Third, the Gate of Life, open" Lee announced as his skin turned red. "Fourth, The Gate of Pain, open!" Then, Lee shot off like a rocket and kicked Gaara into the air again. Then Lee proceeded to knock a helpless Gaara around in the air like a pinball.

"This is the end!" Lee shouted as he appeared above Gaara, "Fifth! Gate of Limits, open!" Lee then punched Gaara with such force that he was hurtling towards the earth much faster than naturally possible. Then he grabbed part of the sash Gaara was wearing and pulled him up into another punch and a kick to the mid section, propelling them both to the ground at an alarming rate.

"Hidden Lotus!" Lee exclaimed, as he landed with his foot and fist in Gaara's torso. However, as Lee leapt clear, he noticed that Gaara was still not finished. Gaara was hurting, definitely, but not defeated, and Lee had almost no strength left. Lee couldn't crawl away fast enough to escape the sand closing in on his left arm and leg.

"Sand Burial!" Gaara said as his sand crushed Lee's appendages accompanied by some sickening cracks. Just as Gaara was getting ready to finish the Konoha genin off, Might Guy interfered in the match to prevent further harm to his prized student.

"Why did you save him?" Gaara asked as he brought a hand to his head.

"He is my precious student." Guy replied as Gaara began to stand up.

"Whatever." Gaara said as he began to walk away.

"Winner of match 9...cough… Gaara of the Desert." Hayate announced. Suddenly, everyone gasped. Guy turned around to see Lee back on his feet.

"Lee, enough. It's over. You shouldn't be standing on that leg…" Guy never finished his statement, for he realized that Lee was unconscious. Tears streaked down Guy's face as he pulled his apprentice's body into an embrace, "Lee, you are already a great ninja."

Hayate came over to inspect the damage, "Medical team get over here, now!"

The medical team rushed over to help the young genin, and then one of the med-nin pulled Guy off to the side. "I understand you are his jonin instructor." The med-nin stated.

Guy merely nodded, not exactly trusting his voice at the moment.

"Lee is breathing properly. He has shattered bones and torn muscles throughout his body. However, the damage to his left arm and leg is so severe that I fear that it may never heal. He will not be able to continue as a ninja."

The next voice Guy heard was not one he was suspecting, "No way… it has to be a lie. What is he supposed to do?! He was always talking about how he wanted to fight the geniuses. Can't you guys do something about it!" Naruto progressed from a whisper to shouting at the medical team. No one said anything as Lee was carted off the floor. After a little awkward silence, Naruto and Guy finally made their way back up to the balcony.

-------------------------------

"Match ten, Tenten Saseru versus Dosu Kinuta." Hayate said before coughing.

Tenten made her way down to the arena floor. So far Team Guy had only passed one person to the final round, and it wasn't the person she would have bet on. Frankly, she was still shocked that this year's "dead last" had managed to defeat last year's number one rookie. She sighed, she couldn't dwell on what happened to Neji, she had her own fight to win.

"Are you ready?" Hayate asked, Tenten nodded. "Then, begin."

Before Tenten had time to react, Dosu had rushed her and forced her to block an punch aimed at her head. However, Tenten could hear a very painful ringing in her right ear before her eardrum ruptured. Tenten's balance and eyesight were now askew. She managed to put some distance between herself and the Oto-nin, but she could barely stand.

"Guess I'll have to try and end this quickly." Tenten said as she reached into her bag and pulled out a scroll. She wiped some of the blood from her ear onto her thumb as she unraveled the scroll and smeared the blood on the scroll. She then leapt as high as she could into the air, spiraling the scroll around her.

"Rising Dragon Jutsu." Tenten said as she began to launch a volley of every type of thrown weapon ever created. However, with her uneven balance and blurred vision, her normal one-hundred percent accuracy was reduced to half that, and the attacks that were on target Dosu easily deflected.

"Heh, it seems you are reliant on your thrown weapons, and with my attack your balance has been messed up, making your attacks much less useful. I guess I should just finish it now." Dosu said. With that, Dosu rushed in again, and Tenten made to avoid the attack, but this time she heard the same ringing as last time, but in her left ear. She could feel blood trickling our of her left ear before she retched and lost her lunch on the floor, then passed out.

"Winner match 10, Dosu Kinuta." Hayate announced the winner. Without any pause the scoreboard showed the pairing for the next match.

"Match eleven, Kankuro Sukimakaze versus Kaen Kanadzuchi." Hayate said.

------------------------------

Kaen descended the stairs to arena floor slowly, trying to get a read on her opponent before her match started. The large bundle Kankuro had on his back worried her a bit.

_What is that thing?_ Kaen wondered_._

Kankuro let the bundle fall to the ground, his hand resting on top of it, as Hayate asked them if they were ready.

"You bet!" Kaen answered enthusiastically.

"Hmph." Kankuro grunted in response.

"Begin!" Hayate commanded.

Kaen immediately began signing, "Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Kaen launched a series of fireballs. Before the fireballs could land though, Kaen quickly flashed through another set of signs, "Fuuton: Hitofuki!" A strong gust of wind emanated from Kaen and quickly caught the fireballs, turning them into large uncontrolled balls of flame. The destruction was massive.

Kankuro emerged from the blaze intact, barely. Most of his clothes were burned off, his hair was singed, and his face…was…falling off?

"Well, that was nice." Kankuro taunted, "But, now it's my turn to play." Suddenly, the wrapped up bundle unwrapped to expose a perfectly healthy Kankuro. The damaged Kankuro turned out to be a puppet.

"A puppet?" Kaen wondered out loud, "Damn."

Suddenly the puppet was on top of her, trying to embrace her, something she was pretty sure she didn't want to do. She couldn't get enough room to get off another jutsu or launch an attack of any sort against the puppeteer.

"Damn it." Kaen said. She was getting frustrated and flustered. She wasn't getting anywhere, and was slowly tiring. If this kept up the puppet was going to catch her, "I guess I'm gonna have to use that jutsu."

Kaen ran through her hand signs, not bothering to dodge as the puppet caught up to her. "Katon: Gibusu Enkoo!" As soon as the puppet pulled her into it's embrace, her body was wreathed in flames. Kankuro looked on in shock as Kaen became fire. Kankuro could feel the heat coming off of Kaen from across the arena, and knew that Karasu's joints and other vital points might melt at that temperature. He had to end it now. He commanded Karasu to crush the girl. However, it was too late, Karasu's joints had fused together and would not move.

Kaen freed herself from Karasu and stalked over to Kankuro. She knew she didn't have a lot of time, the Gibusu Enkoo took a lot of chakra and at her current state she could only maintain the form for 45 to 60 seconds. Kankuro was in a state of panic, his puppet now useless, he had little other ways to defend himself. Kankuro launched a pathetic volley of kunai and shuriken. Kaen easily knocked the projectiles out of the way. Her time was short and she had to finish this. However, as she closed in to finish Kankuro, she noticed him smirk. Before she could wonder why he was smiling she felt something pierce her from behind in her left shoulder. She lost her control over the Gibusu Enkoo and the flames around her winked out of existence. She looked over her shoulder to see the detached head of the puppet she had destroyed, a blade coming out of its mouth.

"Damn…" Kaen said as she passed out.

"Winner of match ten, Kankuro Sukimakaze." Hayate announced.

Kankuro sighed, "It's gonna take weeks just to fix the damage to Karasu." Kankuro set to picking up the pieces of his broken puppet.

"Match eleven will be…cough cough." Hayate said as the scoreboard randomly selected two of the remaining four competitors, "Chouji Akimichi versus Kabe Ganseki. Which will make match twelve Shino Aburame versus Ino Yamanaka."

-------------------

Chouji barreled down the stairs leading to the arena floor, egged on by Asuma's promise of a barbecue dinner if he won his match. His opponent however, casually strolled down to the floor.

"Match eleven, Chouji Akimichi versus Kabe Ganseki. Are you ready." Hayate said before launching into one of his trademark coughing fits.

"Yes!" Chouji shouted. Kabe merely nodded.

"Begin!" Hayate instructed.

Chouji immediately put his hands into his family's secret sign, "Expansion Jutsu!" Chouji grew several times larger, and looked like a large ball. Then, his head, arms, and legs all retreated into his body and he began rolling with incredible speed for something with such size, "Human Boulder!"

Kabe looked at the rolling ball that was Chouji slightly in shock. He had never seen anything like it. "Doton: Jooheki!" Kabe announced his jutsu as a giant wall of stone came up to shield him, but it was not enough as Chouji blasted through the wall and knocked Kabe back into the wall.

"Damn." Kabe said as he picked himself up. "Doton: Koudo Mori!" Kabe unleashed another attack, this time several large lances made of rock rushed out at Chouji, but Chouji was moving too fast and the lances just glanced off of him. Kabe just barely moved out of the way to avoid being crushed against the wall. Chouji ground the wall then eventually changed direction and continued pursuing Kabe. Kabe was running out of options, he was pretty sure he didn't have any jutsus that could stop Chouji in this form, so his only hope was to wait the Konoha-nin out and let him run out of chakra. This worked for a few minutes, but Kabe was getting tired constantly having to dodge the massive ball of flesh and it didn't seem Chouji was slowing down any time soon. Kabe was about to dodge the rolling tank when it dissipated in a cloud of smoke. Before Kabe could even react he felt a large blow hit him in the stomach, he looked down to see Chouji's head planted firmly in his stomach. Kabe then felt blood trickle out of his mouth.

_Damn, he let his jutsu go and used the momentum to propel himself into a head butt. _Kabe thought. However, before Kabe had a chance to recover, Chouji had resumed his original jutsu and crushed Kabe into the ground, knocking the Oto-nin out.

"Winner match 11, Chouji Akimichi." Hayate intoned. "Now for the last match, Shino Aburame versus Ino Yamanaka."

A lot of the genins were hoping for an explosive end to the preliminaries, but they were sorely disappointed. Ino was outclassed by far by the offspring of the Aburame clan. Shino's kikai bugs immediately attached themselves to Ino and began to drain her chakra. In her one attempt to be able to win the match she used her Mind Transfer Jutsu, only to end up taking control of one of Shino's bugs while the rest drained her of chakra, knocking her out.

After the conclusion of the final match all the winners were called up to the statue to be addressed by the Hokage, "I'd like to congratulate you all on passing through to the third exam. Also, I'd like to take this time to explain the Third Exam. As I said before, your matches will be watched by many important people. Each of you will fight to represent the strengths of your countries. I'd like you to show off your powers with no reservations. This is why the finals will be held in one month."

"We're not going to do it right here, right now?" Naruto asked.

Sarutobi smiled slightly as he responded, "This break will be used for preparations. In addition to contacting all the VIPs that need to attend and making arrangements for the event, it is time for you to prepare as well. You should use the time to get to know your enemy and yourself. Up until now, you have been fighting unknown opponents as you would be in a real life scenario. However the final exam will not be like this. Some of you have shown all your tricks, and some are injured from fighting powerful opponents. To make everything fair, this month should be used by all of you to improve yourselves. Now, before your dismissed there is one more thing to take care of."

At this, Anko appeared holding a bag. The Hokage continued his explanation, "You will now draw lots to determine how the matches for the final exam will play out. Then after everyone has taken one tell us your number so we can record it."

The genin did as they were told, and when they were done they were greeted by a tournament style bracket with their names written down on it. The brackets were:

Match 1: Tsuneni Tadashii vs. Shiroi Wangetsu

Match 2: Temari Sukimakaze vs. Shikamaru Nara

Match 3: Chouji Akimichi vs. Shino Aburame

Match 4: Haku Kousetsu vs. Kankuro Sukimakaze

Match 5: Gaara of the Desert vs. Sasuke Uchiha

Match 6: Dosu Kinuta versus winner of Preliminary Match.

Both Naruto and Hinata's faces dropped as they looked at who was participating the extra preliminary match.

Preliminary Match: Naruto Uzumaki vs. Hinata Hyuga.

-------------------------------

A/N

Q&A time

Will some NaruHina romance happen soon? Ho ho ho, you need to slow down there cowboy (or cowgirl). Remember I'm dealing with the 12 year old versions of Hinata and Naruto. At this point, you're looking at a little while before you see anything solid start blooming. But, to aide you in your wait, I'll tell you now that I have plans on laying the groundwork for their eventual union in the Search for Tsunade arc. However, be patient it's gonna take a long long time before they truly get together, you have to remember their age and also Hinata's shyness as well as Naruto being... well, Naruto.

When you said his team is trying to push him and Hinata together, does that mean Sasuke too? Yes and no. Yes, because Sasuke simply wants to be left alone at this point, and if getting Hinata and Naruto together means the spend more time around each other and less around him then the better. No, because he's not really doing anything he wouldn't do already.

Thank you all for your positive reviews and criticism. The positive feedback makes me want to write more, and I'm truly glad that at least someone out there enjoys what I have to write. I hope you enjoyed this newer chapter as much as the previous ones.


	7. Chapter 7 The Passing of a Month

Four Man Squads

Chapter 7 - The Passing of a Month

Obito had taken Sasuke back to Konoha. He was sad that he couldn't stay and watch the rest of the matches, especially for his team. However, the situation with Sasuke seemed to be hitting critical mass, and something had to be done. Sasuke was in extreme amounts of pain from what Obito could tell. Obito had finished the preparation for the sealing ritual when he heard footsteps from behind him. Sharingan active, Obito turned around to see was approaching. As soon as Obito saw the messy lump of gray hair and the forehead protector pulled low over one eye, he knew that his old friend had finally showed up to help.

"What's up, Kakashi?" Obito greeted warmly as he dropped the Sharingan.

"Not much, you know the standard ANBU stuff." Kakashi replied, "How's Rin?"

"She's good." Obito answered, "She told me to tell you to stop by more the next time I saw you."

"Yeah, figured she'd say something like that." Kakashi stated, "I wish I could really, but being in charge of all of ANBU doesn't leave me a lot of free time."

"That's what I told her. Guy also wants to renew his 'youthful rivalry' with you." Obito replied with a smirk.

Kakashi looked at Obito exasperatedly, "He still goes on about the powers of youth and all that?"

"Yeah, you know Guy." Obito answered, "Anyway, on to business…"

"Yes, you need help sealing a Curse Mark Jutsu from Orochimaru." Kakashi finished for Obito, "I see you've finished the preparations as I instructed then we can get started. You'll need to copy my every move with the Sharingan, hopefully this seal will hold the curse."

Kakashi and Obito then began a long series of signs that stretched on for a good couple of minutes. Finally they both intoned together, "Divine Seal: Six Dragons Jutsu!" The markings Obito had made around the area began to retreat into Sasuke's neck around the curse seal. The markings took the form of six dragons encircling the Curse Seal. Sasuke screamed in pain as the jutsu took effect, and soon passed out.

"Whew," Kakashi let out a breath of relief. Obito was shocked at how draining the sealing actually was. Kakashi addressed Obito, "That seal should keep the curse from interfering with Sasuke's chakra or activating on its own. However, if Sasuke wants to release the curse mark he can, and each time he releases it the seal gets a little weaker until it breaks."

"Well, I'll have to make sure he knows that and the implications of releasing the curse." Obito replied.

"So, You two can use sealing jutsu now? My how you've both grown." a disembodied voice rang through the massive chamber. Obito and Kakashi both turned to see who the voice belonged to, only to meet the snake-like eyes of Orochimaru.

"You are…" Kakashi started.

"Orochimaru." Obito finished, his Sharingan now active.

"Long time no see, Kakashi-kun, Obito-kun." Orochimaru said as he came out into the clear, "I hate to disappoint you both, but I'm not here for either of you, I want the boy behind you.

"Why are you after my cousin?" Obito asked.

"Simple, I want what you and he have. I desire the Sharingan." Orochimaru answered.

"What are your goals?" Kakashi inquired.

"The newly created Otogakure, that's my village. You should understand from just that." Orochimaru replied.

"If you get any closer to Sasuke, even if you are one of the Yonnin. Kakashi and I can compete with you." Obito said as he flashed through handsigns, "Katon: Yari Daikage!" Obito felt the familiar staff of flame form from his hand. He then heard what sounded like thousands of chirping birds. Kakashi had decided to use his Chidori, even though he couldn't use it to any great effect.

"Heh, ha ha ha ha." Orochimaru laughed at them, "What you do, what you say, is all off. That seal is meaningless. To accomplish his goals, he will accept even the most evil power. This is the way of the avenger. Sasuke-kun will eventually seek me out to gain more power." Orochimaru turned and began to walk away, "Also, were you guys going to try and kill me? Why don't you try, if you can."

Obito suddenly felt the immense wave of killing intent hit him, and knew immediately what would have happened had he faced Orochimaru, even with Kakashi at his side.

"Compete with him?" Kakashi said, obviously as shaken as Obito was, "Are you an idiot?"

Obito grinned and shrugged then turned around to pick up the unconscious Sasuke and walked out of the room, and off to the hospital.

---------------------------

Naruto, Hinata, and Sakura followed the convoy out of the Forest of Death. Everyone was traveling together for protection. Naruto and Hinata hadn't said a word to each other since learning that they would have to face off in the first round. They knew the chance was there that they'd have to fight, but to have to do it in the first round sucked, big time.

"Um… Naruto-kun?" Hinata started.

"Yeah, Hinata-chan?" Naruto responded.

"I-I'm sorry we have to f-fight." Hinata said.

Naruto's grin returned, "What are you talking about? You had no control over how the pairings would turn out."

"So what are you going to do?" Sakura asked both of them.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked obliviously.

"Uh… geez you're dense. You and Hinata do most of your training together, what are you going to do now?" Sakura explained, "You're supposed to use this time to train and develop new techniques. So what are you going to do? If you two keep training together then you'll know all of each other's moves."

"I never thought of that, but you guys are my teammates, I can't keep things from you guys. I'll keep training with Hinata as long as she wants. Do you want to keep training with me Hinata-chan?" Naruto replied.

"Y-yes, Naruto-kun. I would like that." Hinata answered.

"There, so that's settled." Naruto said happily.

Team 7, minus Sasuke, continued on their way through Training Ground 44, much happier than before.

-----------------------------

A few days after the completion of the preliminary rounds, Obito had his genin team out at their usual meeting spot under his light pole. He was extremely pleased, three of his four genin passed, and from what he heard Sakura's match was an extremely unfavorable one. He was less than pleased at the fact that Hinata and Naruto had to face off right at the beginning of the exam, but these things happen. Another thing he was pleased that Naruto and Hinata were going to continue training together regardless of the fact they were to fight in a month.

"Alright, well since most of you are going to be participating in the third exam in a month, we won't be having any missions for a while," Obito addressed his team, Sakura looked slightly dejected, being the only person not to pass the preliminary, "This means we'll be spending all our days training. I want you all to continue your team training under me. However, I'm also going to recommend you all get specialized training from other sources. Hinata, I know you will most likely be receiving training from your father. Sasuke, I still have a few more fire jutsu I wish to teach you, and I have a friend, Kakashi Hatake, who can help you with some lightning jutsu so you will be training under both of us. Sakura, even though you aren't competing, Rin has agreed to further your medic training and I've convinced Kurenai Yuhi, the jonin for Team 8 to help you with genjutsu." Obito watched as Sakura perked up from hearing she was going to be learning genjutsu from Konoha's "Mistress of Illusion."

"What about me, Obito-sensei?" Naruto asked eager for whatever special training he was going to undertake.

"Well, I know of a special person coming in to the village for reasons other than picking up an apprentice, but I think you should try to recruit his help in aiding your training. Until you can, or if you don't, I've arranged for Ebisu, you know him, to help you with your chakra control as you're still pretty sloppy in that regard." Obito replied.

"Who's this special person?" Naruto inquired happily.

"Jiraiya the Toad Sage, one of the legendary Yonnin." Obito replied simply. All of the genin stared at Obito in awe, "He trained the Yondaime. He also has a lot in common with you Naruto, I think he'll take you under his wing in no time. Anyway, I need you all to get to me your training schedules so I can figure out when we are going to train as a unit, preferably it would be the afternoons that we could leave open for team training. You're all dismissed until 3:30 in the afternoon tomorrow." Obito then disappeared in a small gale of leaves.

"Kakashi Hatake?" Sasuke wondered to himself, "The leader of ANBU."

"Well, it seems we're all going to be busy for the next month." Naruto said cheerily.

"H-hai, Naruto-kun." Hinata affirmed.

"You guys have any plans for the rest of the day?" Naruto asked.

"N-no." Hinata replied.

Sakura took a long look at Sasuke, "Not really…"

"You got something in mind, idiot?" Sasuke answered.

"Well, I was thinking we could get something to eat, been a while since we ate as a team." Naruto said rubbing the back of his head, "Then we might as well get a jumpstart on our training."

"Sounds good to me." Sasuke said as he got up.

"Really?" Naruto and Sakura asked at the same time.

"Yeah, why not?" Sasuke replied his usual scowl covering his face.

"Well, you'd usually say something like," Naruto but on a scowl of his own and did his best to impersonate Sasuke, "'You're all annoying.'"

"Don't be rude to Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled at Naruto as she walloped him on the back of the head.

Sasuke wasn't too pleased with Naruto at the moment, but he had questions he wanted answers to. Like how Naruto beat Neji, when Neji had obviously gotten the advantage in the match, and those insane powers he had released against Orochimaru. Sasuke was hoping to spar with Naruto a bit and see if he could see where that power came from.

"Are we going to go or what?" Sasuke asked impatiently.

"Of course." Sakura said happily as she grabbed on to Sasuke's arm.

"N-Naruto-kun, are you okay?" Hinata asked worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Hinata-chan. Sakura-chan hits harder every day." Naruto replied as he rubbed the knot on his head. "They're leaving us behind!" Naruto took off running to catch up with Sakura and Sasuke.

"N-Naruto-kun!" Hinata said as she took off after her crush.

-------------------------

After enjoying a rather nice dinner and an extensive sparring session Team 7 was reasonably exhausted. Sasuke, however, was frustrated. He got no answers as to where Naruto's strength came from. Sasuke decided to take a page from Naruto's book on this one, and just be as blunt as possible.

"Hey, Naruto, where do you get all your strength from?" Sasuke said.

"Huh?" Naruto replied, oblivious to the meaning of the question.

"Well, you have a lot of stamina and what seems like a nearly inexhaustible amount of chakra. Where does it all come from?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah, and those sudden bursts of chakra when you were fighting Orochimaru and Haku. I could feel it, Naruto. It felt… unreal." Sakura added.

Naruto looked around panic-stricken, he wanted to be anywhere else but here.

"Hinata, you've seen his chakra through the Byakugan, is there anything weird about it?" Sasuke asked.

"W-well… umm… usually no. B-but, in those two instances that Sakura brought up, his chakra was different, and in the fight against H-Haku it took the s-shape of a f-fox for a brief period." Hinata answered.

Naruto looked around at his teammates, took a deep breath, and assumed the appearance of someone who had decided to do something that he might later regret, "Alright, I guess I can't keep it from you guys any longer. I assume you're all familiar with the Kyuubi no Kitsune?"

"Yeah, it was killed in that attack on Konoha twelve years ago." Sakura answered.

"Yes and no." Naruto answered, "What actually happened was the bastard fox was sealed into a newborn baby as no mortal is strong enough to slay a demon, much less one of the bijuu. Anyway, you know the date of the attack right?"

"O-October tenth." Hinata answered. She did not like where this was going.

"Right, my birthday, I'm 12 years old." Naruto answered solemnly. Both Hinata and Sakura gasped and raised a hand to their mouths. Sasuke still wore his normal stoic expression. _That explains a lot._ Sasuke thought.

"N-Naruto-kun, are you s-saying that the K-Kyuubi is sealed in… inside you?" Hinata asked.

"Yes. I understand if you guys don't want to have anything to do with me anymore." Naruto said dejectedly.

Hinata looked at her crush sadly, so much he had carried, for so long. She could feel tears starting to form, "No," she said, her voice uncharacteristically resolute, "This is not something you have to carry alone, Naruto-kun."

"Really? You mean that?" Naruto asked.

"Hai, why should it matter whether or not you contain a demon?" Hinata answered.

"Thank you!" Naruto exclaimed as he launched himself at Hinata and embraced her tightly. Hinata could feel the blood rush to her face as her mind raced, _Do not faint. Do not faint. Do not faint._

"Yeah, you might be an idiot and annoying sometimes. But, you're our annoying idiot." Sakura stated. Naruto turned his head as he released his embrace on Hinata and smiled at Sakura.

"Hmph." Sasuke said, "You're still an idiot." Sasuke had a slight smirk on his face.

"Thanks, guys." Naruto said as he wiped away a tear, "I was so afraid you guys would run away from me if you found out, and you all are really the first friends I've ever had."

_I guess I should be a little nicer to him. _Sakura thought, _I never knew he had been through so much._

Team 7 split up as they made their ways home for the night. As per the usual, Hinata and Naruto ended up strolling down the street together.

"Thanks again for the things you said Hinata-chan." Naruto said.

"I-it was nothing, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata said blushing as she remembered the embrace he had given her.

"No, it wasn't. It was everything. You really don't know how long I've lived in fear of what would happen if you guys had found out. I was sure I would lose you." Naruto replied honestly.

"N-Naruto-kun, you'll never lose me." Hinata said, she was slightly shocked at what she was saying, but Naruto was going through something through a crisis, and she would walk through all nine circles of Hell to help him.

Naruto stopped abruptly. Hinata turned to look at her love. He was crying, she didn't know what exactly to do at that moment.

"Thanks, that means a lot to me." Naruto said through some sniffles. He then walked up to Hinata and pulled her into another embrace. Again, Hinata could feel herself turn a deep shade of crimson. After the embrace, Naruto and Hinata walked the rest of the way to point where they'd have to split up in relative silence. Naruto had nothing left to say, and Hinata was solely focused on not fainting. Naruto had left one his arms wrapped around Hinata, as if he was afraid of breaking human contact.

As they came to their point of separation, Naruto finally broke contact with Hinata. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" Naruto asked.

"H-hai." Hinata answered.

"Well, then bye, Hinata-chan." Naruto said as he began to turn around.

"G-Goodbye, Naruto-kun." Hinata replied as she left to return to the Hyuga manor.

------------------------------

As Hinata entered the Hyuga compound, a branch house member told her that her father wanted to see her. Therefore, she found herself standing outside the door to her father's study, fretting over what her father was going to say. She knocked on the door.

"Enter." Her father's voice commanded. Hinata opened the door to see Neji sitting beside her father, both of them staring at her intently.

"I-I was told you wanted to s-see me, father." Hinata said as she sat in front of Hiashi and Neji.

"Yes. First, I must congratulate you on reaching the final portion of the Chuunin Exams. Neji here told me of how you handled yourself against that Oto kunoichi." Hiashi stated. "It seems that I have been underestimating you somewhat."

Hinata looked at Neji. Something about him seemed different, while he still looked at Hiashi with hate, he didn't seem to be as angry at everyone else. Had Naruto knocked some sense into him?

"However," her father continued, "I have also been informed that your opponent in the first round of the final rounds is Naruto Uzumaki. The same genin who beat Neji in the preliminaries. If I may ask, how do you plan on defeating the one who defeated Neji, who is considered to be one of the most gifted Hyuga in generations?"

"I-I don't know, father." Hinata answered honestly, she knew that her father could tell if she was lying. "I-I have a month to figure it out."

"As I thought… well, I have something to help you then." Hiashi said. Hinata couldn't believe it, her father was going to help her. Hiashi continued, "Neji has offered to help prepare you for the fight with the Uzumaki boy. You are going to be training with him, under me, every morning until the exams. We will be working on trying to teach you the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms and the Kaiten."

"Hai, father." Hinata said, this fit perfectly with what Obito-sensei was wanting, so she had no reason to refuse.

"Well, then you may go, Hinata. Get some rest, we start tomorrow." Hiashi stated. Hinata nodded and complied with the order, immediately heading to her room and taking a quick shower and getting to bed.

-----------------------------

Naruto met Ebisu early the following morning. Not of his own choice, but rather because Ebisu had found Naruto.

"What do you want, closet perv?" Naruto asked Ebisu, remembering the incident with Konohamaru and the Harem Jutsu.

"Obito-san asked me to oversee your training, and I intend to do that." Ebisu answered.

"Yeah, but why do I have to have you as a trainer, when everyone else gets to train with cool people?" Naruto asked frustrated.

"Because, out of everyone on your team, you have the worst basic skills." Ebisu said.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked.

"You are horrible at converting and controlling chakra. Obito gave me an analysis of your abilities. And while you have been improving, there is still a long way to go before you are able to match Sakura, Hinata, or even Sasuke's skill in chakra control." Ebisu answered.

Naruto simply started at Ebisu for a moment, "So you can make me better than Sasuke?"

"Yes, I can." Ebisu replied confidently, "I'm not a special elite instructor for nothing."

"Alright, let's do this." Naruto answered.

"Good, follow me." Ebisu said as he took off to where Naruto would be doing his training.

---------------------

Team 7 met up with Obito at 3:30 at the park where they always met at. Obito would've been late, if it hadn't been for Rin making sure he made it on time. Obito looked around at his team. All of them looked pretty rough, he guessed they had all started their training. Naruto looked like he'd been boiled, Hinata was nursing some bruises and looked like some of her tenketsu points had been closed, Sakura was just suffering from exhaustion, and Sasuke had some chakra burns around his hands.

"I see you've all started your morning training sessions. I assume everything is going alright." Obito said. All of the genin just nodded. "Good, then each of you is going to be putting your training to use here."

"What are we going to be doing?" Sakura asked.

"Well, I'm actually going to be leaving that to you." Obito said, "In time, you each need to learn how to come up with a training system for yourselves, instead of relying on others to train you. I feel this is as good of a time as any. You each need to decide for yourselves how you want to train during this time."

The reactions were what Obito was expecting. Sasuke got up and walked off, obviously wishing to train alone, and Sakura followed him. Naruto and Hinata then left together to train like they usually did. Obito sighed, he was going to have to break Sasuke out of his shell, but Obito didn't know how to go about it.

-------------------------------------------

Naruto and Hinata had ran off to the area that Ebisu had taken Naruto earlier that day. It was a rather beautiful area actually. There was a hot spring at the top of a cliff that flowed over the side to make a waterfall and a second hot spring at the bottom of the falls. There was a bathhouse nearby, but Hinata was too busy staring at the beauty of the waterfall to really notice.

"Umm… N-Naruto-kun, what are we d-doing here?" Hinata asked.

"Training, of course." Naruto said as he stepped out on to the water. He sank into the water up to about half way up his shins, took a few steps, and finally fell into the hot spring. Naruto then climbed out of the hot spring cursing, it at least explained why he looked like a boiled clam.

"Damn it, I can't get the hang of it." Naruto said as he shook himself a little dry.

"M-maybe I can help." Hinata said. She gathered chakra to her feet and took a step out onto the water. Her feet sunk into the water a little, she noticed exactly how hot it was. She activated her Byakugan and watched the chakra she emitted from her feet. She noticed it took constant adjustment to keep her feet stuck to the surface. Eventually, she got the hang of it and was standing quite easily on top of the water.

"O-okay, Naruto-kun. You try it again." Hinata called out. Naruto carefully stepped out onto the water again, "Try to expel chakra just enough to keep yourself afloat." Naruto began to sink.

"More." Hinata advised. Naruto then began to rise out of the water, but was about to unbalance himself.

"Less." Hinata corrected him, Naruto complied and began to settle onto the water like Hinata.

"Thanks, Hinata-chan." Naruto said, then he looked over her shoulder, "What's that old man doing? Is he peeking into the bathhouse?"

Hinata looked at the old man through her Byakugan, "Yes he is." She answered.

"Hey, Old Man…" Naruto started to shout before he crashed into the water. Hinata stifled a giggle as Naruto pulled himself out of the hot spring. Naruto ran over to the white-haired old man.

"Hey, you pervert!" Naruto shouted, "What are you doing looking at the ladies' bath?" Suddenly, shouts rang out from the bathhouse as the women inside realized that the voices were talking about that particular bath.

"Keep it quiet, brat." The old man covered Naruto's mouth, "You're gonna get me caught."

Hinata strolled up to the spectacle as Naruto finally got his mouth free of the old man's head, "Who the hell are you?"

The old man jumped away from the two genin, "I'm glad you asked! I'm the toad sage from Mount Myobokuzan. Jiraiya, one of the legendary Yonnin!" Jiraiya struck a series of kabuki poses as he finished his introduction.

Naruto just looked at him stupidly, "You're THE Jiraiya?"

--------------

Team 10 had entered the barbecue after ending their training today. Asuma was proud that his team had performed so well in the preliminary round. Chouji was ecstatic because this was the meal that Asuma had promised to him for winning his match. Shikamaru was just wondering how troublesome the coming weeks were going to be.

"Three more orders of beef, please." Team 10 heard a girl shout from a booth not far from their usual one. The each turned to see the only person occupying the booth was the Suna kunoichi that had forfeited before the preliminaries started. They all stared at her in amazement, the only person they'd ever seen eat three orders of beef alone was Chouji. However, the girl was as skinny as Ino.

"How can she eat that much and not get big?" Ino asked no one in particular, "I have to constantly watch my weight."

"Perhaps she has a high metabolism, or, like Chouji her jutsu expends a lot of calories and allows her to keep a slim figure." Tsuneni stated in her deadpan voice.

"Must be nice…" Ino replied. However, before any of them knew what was going on, Chouji had taken off to the Suna-nin's table.

"You sure you can eat all of that, little girl?" Chouji asked her.

"Oh, I could eat circles around you, big boy." Chiyoko replied.

"I accept your challenge, how many order have you had already?" Chouji asked.

"Four." Chiyoko replied.

"Seven orders of beef!" Chouji shouted as he sat across from the Suna kunoichi.

Ino and Tsuneni just simply stared at what happened. Asuma placed his forehead firmly into his palm. Shikamaru simply muttered, "How troublesome…"

An hour or so later, Team 10 minus Chouji, had enjoyed a rather delicious meal. They all looked over to the booth were Chouji and the Suna-nin were still locked in their eating competition.

"How many orders have they had?" Asuma wondered aloud.

"The Suna kunoichi is on her twenty-fifth order, Chouji is on his twenty-fourth." Tsuneni stated simply.

"You actually kept track?" Ino asked incredulously. Tsuneni merely shrugged.

"Who would have thought there was anyone else who could eat like Chouji?" Shikamaru asked rhetorically.

Suddenly, another Suna kunoichi entered the barbecue restaurant. "Hey, Chiyoko! Baki-sensei wants to talk to us now. Let's go."

"It seems we'll have to postpone our contest." Chiyoko said as she rose from the booth. "Come to think of it, my name is Chiyoko Guujin, what's yours?"

"Chouji Akimichi." Chouji answered her question.

"Well then, Chouji-kun, I'll see you around." Chiyoko said as she ran off with Temari.

Chouji returned to his team. "What was that about?" Ino asked.

"Ah, nothing." Chouji said as a small blush crept onto his face.

"You like her don't you?" Ino pointed her finger at Chouji while she more or less shouted her question.

"Yeah…" Chouji admitted.

"Troublesome…" Shikamaru said as he turned his head to stare at the clouds out the window.

---------------------------------

The next morning, Naruto had met again with Jiraiya at a small waterfall on the outskirts of the village. Naruto was just sitting around being bored while Jiraiya peeked at several young girls playing at the base of the waterfall.

"When are you going to help me with my training, Ero-sennin?" Naruto asked. Jiraiya involuntarily twitched when he heard Naruto's nickname for him.

"Alright, kid. First thing, have you ever felt a special chakra coming from you?" Jiraiya asked.

Naruto thought about it for a second, "Yeah there's been times where I could feel a different chakra flow through me, and I got extremely strong, but I don't remember those times very well. All I do remember is how different it felt, like if I had to put colors to it, my normal chakra is blue and this new chakra is red."

"All right, I want you to try and release that red chakra." Jiraiya said.

"Okay," Naruto answered and began to build up his chakra.

"So?" Jiraiya asked.

"Nope, just my regular chakra." Naruto said sadly.

"Geez, you have no talent." Jiraiya stated.

"Stop acting all high and mighty! I don't even understand these different chakras myself! And, what does this have to do with you teaching me anything?!" Naruto shouted angrily in response.

Jiraiya looked at Naruto, "Listen, the technique I'm going to teach you requires much more than your normal amount of chakra. So, we need to pull out and use that huge chakra sleeping inside of you."

"How do you know about this other chakra?" Naruto asked.

"Well, I am a sennin." Jiraiya responded, "Anyway, this special chakra of yours is your greatest weapon, and not using it is a huge waste. There's no need for you to do training similar to what others go through. Up until now, all your training has been about controlling and conserving chakra so as to not run yourself out of it. However, you have so much chakra that this should never really be a concern for you. Therefore, you should be focusing on raw power rather than control. Since you have two types of chakra and don't tire easily, you should train to release the highest amount of chakra and use it to capacity. When you're able to do that, there's a ton of jutsu that you'll be able to use."

"Like what?" Naruto prodded.

"Like the Kuchiyose no Jutsu that I'm about to teach you." Jiraiya answered.

"Kuchiyose?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, you sign a blood contract with various forms of life, then you can summon them when needed. It's a type of space-time ninjutsu." Jiraiya explained.

"That's awesome! Hurry and teach me!" Naruto shouted.

"First I need you to use up all your normal chakra, so go practice your water walking until then." Jiraiya said as he returned to watching the scantily clad women at the base of the falls.

After about an hour, Jiraiya heard a splash from the river that fed the falls, and dragged Naruto out of it. After Naruto awakened, Jiraiya continued the lesson.

"Since it seems your almost out of chakra, it's time to teach you the technique." Jiraiya said.

"Yay!" Naruto shouted.

"Now, I'm going to demonstrate it so watch closely." Jiraiya said as he bit his thumb, causing blood to come up, and then he slammed his palm to the ground, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

Suddenly, Jiraiya was standing on the back of a rather large toad that was carrying a scroll with its tongue. The toad handed the scroll to Naruto.

"That's really cool." Naruto said as he began to open the scroll.

"That's the summoning contract with the toads, it has been passed down for many generations. You write your name on it in blood, and under that press the fingerprints of each finger in the hand you want to summon with also in blood. After that, when you want to call on them, gather your chakra and place your summoning hand down on the ground or any other surface. The seals for the Jutsu are boar, dog, bird, monkey, ram."

Naruto bit his thumb and used the blood to right his name on the scroll, then after touching his blood to each digit of his right hand pressed his fingerprints into the parchment. "That should do it right?" Naruto asked.

"Alright, give it a try." Jiraiya said.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as he slammed his palm to the ground. After a small puff of smoke, all that was sitting in front of them was a small two-tailed tadpole.

"This is going to be a long month…" Jiraiya stated as he placed his head into his hands.

-------------------------------

Hinata showed up at the same place and time as always for their team training. Her whole body was sore. Her father was still a ruthless trainer, and ever since she had started to try learning both the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms and the Kaiten things hadn't got much easier. However, Neji was much different after his defeat at the hands of Naruto. His anger and rage seemed to be fueled directly at the clan elders and her father. In fact, Neji had apologized to Hinata for his actions, and had even promised to help her in any way he could. Having him there at the training was a blessing, since he had learned the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms and most of the Kaiten on his own, he was a great help in correcting her stances and giving her pointers. However, she was beginning to doubt if the Sixty-four Palms was really suited to her, and had begun to think of ways to adjust it to better suit her own style.

Soon, Naruto came running up to the meeting point shouting her name and waving his arms. Hinata smiled at him and waved back. Soon after, the rest of Team 7 had gathered.

"So what do we want to do today?" Naruto asked.

"W-well, I-I have something I'd l-like to have you all h-help with." Hinata said.

"Alright, Hinata-chan we'll help you." Naruto said, "Right?"

Sakura nodded and Sasuke gave a noncommittal grunt.

"What do you need us to do?" Naruto asked.

"F-first, w-we need to go t-to a training area." Hinata said.

A few minutes later Team 7 was at their usual training grounds with the three stone columns.

"Alright, so what do we need to do?" Sakura asked.

"I-I just want you to throw k-kunai and shuriken at me." Hinata stated.

"What?" Naruto shouted.

"P-please, just do it… for me." Hinata said.

"…Okay, Hinata-chan." Naruto answered.

Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto surrounded Hinata and prepared to throw their weapons when she gave the word. Hinata stood with her Byakugan active, trying to see that familiar green symbol that signified the start of the Eight Trigrams.

"Okay." Hinata said to everyone, and on her command they all threw their weapons simultaneously. Hinata became a sudden blur of movement, and she began to knock kunai in shuriken out of the air, however over half of the projectiles managed to penetrate Hinata's defense, resulting in her getting a little cut up.

"You okay?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, I-I'm fine, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered.

"What is that move?" Sakura asked.

"I-it's a technique that I-I had an idea for." Hinata said. "It's s-supposed to be an ultimate defense, like my clan's Kaiten.

"Why not just use the Kaiten?" Sakura asked.

"I-I'm having trouble learning it," Hinata replied, "A-also, it has weaknesses. L-like how much chakra it uses. This would use a lot less chakra than the Kaiten."

"Cool." Naruto said, "So you wanna try again?" Hinata nodded.

Team 7 worked on Hinata's new technique for a couple of hours before the Hyuga heiress was too tired to do much more. After that, Sasuke and Naruto began to spar as Sakura tended to Hinata's cuts and injuries. Hinata and Sakura watched as their respective crushes fought it out to a stalemate, much to Sasuke's irritation. After they were done with their training session, Team 7 enjoyed a meal at Ichiraku Ramen. Everyone, including Sasuke, enjoyed what little downtime they had between their respective training schedules.

--------------------------------

Two weeks later, Naruto's training in the Kuchiyose no Jutsu hadn't progressed very far. While he was now summoning young frogs, that still had tails, he wasn't progressing fast enough to use the jutsu with any effect during the final rounds.

However, where Naruto was failing the rest of Team 7 was succeeding. Hinata while not fully perfecting any either the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms or the Kaiten, had mastered a lesser version of her family's main jutsu, her own creation, the Eight Trigrams Thirty-two palms, and she was close to completing the maneuver she had began to call the Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms.

Sakura, training under both Rin Uchiha and Kurenai Yuhi, had progressed in using medical jutsu and learned several new genjutsu, including Kurenai's famed Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death technique.

Sasuke was advancing in leaps and bounds. Not only had he learned and mastered the Chidori and a couple of other mid rank lightning jutsu from Kakashi, he learned the Yari Daikage from Obito. All of this on top of learning how to better control and use his Sharingan, Obito was sure that the younger Uchiha would probably waltz through the final rounds.

Naruto couldn't help but feel the last couple of weeks had been useless. He wasn't getting anywhere even though he was always at a point of near chakra exhaustion, he couldn't summon the other chakra Jiraiya said he needed for the summoning jutsu.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as he slammed his palm back down to the ground. The ensuing puff of smoke revealed a young toad with hind legs, but it still had a tail. "Damn it…" Naruto said as he passed out from chakra exhaustion.

Jiraiya sighed and got up from his peeping perch overlooking the base of the waterfall. "Can't blame him for passing out, he's been going at it almost nonstop for the last couple of weeks." Jiraiya said to himself, "It seems his body is still too small to handle the pressure of the Kyuubi's chakra. Forgive me Yondaime, but there is only one way for him to learn how to tap into the Kyuubi's chakra at will." Jiraiya then picked you the blond-haired genin and strode off to a nearby canyon.

Jiraiya laid Naruto down. As soon as Naruto hit the ground, he woke up. "Where am I?" Naruto asked groggily.

"Get up!" Jiraiya commanded, "You're training ends today. If you don't want to die then you better figure this out for yourself."

"Huh?" was all Naruto was able to mutter before Jiraiya used a single finger to push Naruto through a push and over the side of a cliff. Naruto screamed as he began his descent into the gorge. After a little bit of quick thinking, Naruto decided to put his training to use. Gathering his chakra to his hands and feet, Naruto made an attempt to stick himself to one of the outcroppings of the wall. However, this proved fruitless, he was falling too fast and the sides of the wall was too slick to help him.

_At this rate I'm truly going to die! _Naruto thought. Suddenly, Naruto found himself ankle deep in water in what appeared to be a sewer of some sort. He could feel a strong force coming from down the hallway, and he followed it to a large ornate gate with a piece of paper over it, the word "SEAL" written on the paper.

"**Come closer, Kit.**" a voice behind the gate said. Naruto complied with the command only to have a huge set of claws nearly take his head off. "**I want to devour you, kit, but this damn seal is in the way.**"

"You are… the Kyuubi!" Naruto said.

"**For you to come here, what do you want, kit?**" Kyuubi asked.

"Hey, I'm letting you live in my body you stupid fox. So how about you give me some of your chakra as rent?" Naruto demanded.

"**If you die, I die, eh? To threaten me like this, you got guts, kit. I like you, here's your 'rent.'**" Kyuubi answered as he seeped some of his chakra through the seal and gave it to Naruto.

Naruto's eyes snapped back open to see that he was still plummeting to his doom. "This is it, this is the Kyuubi's chakra." Naruto said to himself as he went through the now familiar handsigns. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto yelled as he slammed a palm to another on of the cliffs outcroppings. Naruto suddenly felt his fall stop as he landed on something soft.

"Whoa, this thing is huge." Naruto said as he looked around in amazement. He finally laid down on the massive toad he had just summoned.

"**You lil' punk! What'cha doin' on top my head?!**" they large toad yelled, "**I finally get some fresh air and this happens. Jiraiya summons me and puts some weird kid on top of my head. Hey punk where's Jiraiya?**"

"Jiraiya? I'm the one who summoned you." Naruto answered.

"**You summoned me?!"** the huge toad shouted, "**Don't make me laugh, kid. You shouldn't be telling lies like that. There's no way some shrimp like you could summon me.**"

"You piece of shit toad! How dare you say such things!" Naruto yelled back, "I'm the one that summoned you, so I'm your master! You got that, you stupid toad?!"

"**Who the hell do you think you are?**" the toad replied, "**Some little punk is saying he's the master of the Boss Toad, Gamabunta-sama.** **You want your head ripped off?**"

"I'm sorry, boss toad." Naruto said, in fear of his life once again.

"**Alright, calm down. I'll make you my underling, be thankful.**" Gamabunta replied.

"Hai, boss toad." Naruto nodded in acceptance. Gamabunta then wrapped Naruto up in his tongue and hopped out of the chasm. Naruto passed out from the sudden movement and his own chakra depletion. Gamabunta looked down to see the toad summoning contract laying on the ground and read the new name on the list.

"**Naruto Uzumaki, eh? So this kid did summon me. Impressive, no one has ridden on my head since Yondaime. Calling me took a lot out of the kid though, guess I should take him to the hospital.**" Gamabunta said as he took off to Konoha Hospital.

---------------------

Naruto groaned as he opened his eyes.

"Finally awake, eh?" a man next to Naruto said. Naruto looked over to see the familiar pineapple hairdo of Shikamaru.

"Where am I?" Naruto asked.

"Hospital, you've been asleep for three days." Shikamaru answered.

"Why am I here with you? Where's Ero-sennin?" Naruto questioned.

"How would I know?" Shikamaru replied, "I came to see Chouji, and they said you were sleeping here so I came to see you."

"What's wrong with Chouji?" Naruto inquired.

"Nothing much, he just injured his stomach getting into one of his troublesome eating contests with a Suna kunoichi that he's taking a liking too. It's troublesome really." Shikamaru informed him.

Naruto laughed, "Sounds like him."

"Well, you two aren't the types to have girls come visit you. Anyway, I brought a fruit basket for Chouji, but the doctors said no, so I thought we could split it." Shikamaru said.

"You're a nice guy, Shikamaru." Naruto said.

"Whatever, I just brought it because otherwise it would go to waste." Shikamaru stated.

"We should eat this in front of Chouji." Naruto suggested while holding back a laugh.

"Man, you sure are a pain in the ass." Shikamaru sighed.

Naruto and Shikamaru got up and began to make their way over to Chouji's room when they noticed Gaara in Rock Lee's room. Shikamaru quickly used his Shadow Possession Jutsu to stop Gaara from finishing whatever he was doing.

Naruto flew into the room and punched Gaara straight in the jaw while shouting, "What the hell do you think you're doing in here?!"

"Hey, Naruto. While I'm using the Shadow Possession Jutsu, I mimic his movements." Shikamaru said.

"Sorry, Shikamaru." Naruto apologized. Naruto then turned back to Gaara, "What are you up to?"

"I was trying to kill him.' Gaara replied in his deadpan tone.

"Why is there a need to do that?" Shikamaru asked, "You won your match. Do you have some sort of personal grudge against Lee?"

"I do not." Gaara replied, his voice still in monotone, "I'm going to kill him just because I want to kill him."

"What the hell are you talking about, bastard?!" Naruto yelled.

"You must have had a messed up childhood. How self-centered can you be?" Shikamaru replied.

"If you get in my way, I'll kill you too." Gaara answered.

"Go ahead and try!" Naruto shouted in response.

"Hey, stop, Naruto." Shikamaru tried to calm the blonde down, "We know from your fight that you're strong. However, we aren't too bad either, and we didn't show off our special moves either. Also, it's two on one, so if you listen to what we say, we'll let you leave quietly."

"I'll say it again, get in my way and I'll kill you." Gaara responded.

"I won't be killed by the likes of you!" Naruto again provoked the red-headed Suna-nin.

"I told you to stop it!" Shikamaru reprimanded Naruto, "His strength is like a monster, don't you understand?"

"I have a real monster in me." Naruto answered, "I won't lose to him."

"A monster, eh?" Gaara said. "Then it's the same as me. As you said, I had a messed up childhood…" Gaara than began to give Shikamaru and Naruto a detailed description of his life, including how his mother was sacrificed to seal Shukaku into Gaara as he was born, and then the constant assassination attempts as Gaara grew unstable and was deemed a threat. Then he informed Naruto and Shikamaru of how he values his existence by killing others. Suddenly, Gaara's sand began to lash out, and at that time another person entered the room.

"That's enough!" The new person was none other than Might Guy, "The final rounds are only about a week away, so don't get antsy. Or do you want to stay here until the finals are over?"

Gaara grasped his head as in pain and walked over to the door of the room, "I'll definitely kill all of you, just wait." After that statement, Gaara left.

Shikamaru sighed, "So troublesome…"

-------------------------

The next week went by quickly for Team 7. With the increased training regimen they rarely had time to think about much else. Naruto was ecstatic about finally mastering the Kuchiyose no Jutsu. Hinata had been making serious progress on the Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms. Sasuke was learning various styles for spears and staffs from Obito to help him with using the Yari Daikage. Sakura continued her practice of genjutsu.

Two days before the final rounds were to begin Hinata and Naruto were training together like they did on most days. Both of them, however, were saving their energies for the final rounds.

"N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata said as they relaxed under a tree to enjoy lunch.

"Yeah, Hinata-chan?" Naruto replied.

"A-are you n-nervous about the final rounds?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah. It's nothing but strong people in the finals. I'd be crazy not to be nervous." Naruto answered honestly.

"T-that's not exactly what I m-meant, Naruto-kun." Hinata said.

Naruto sighed, "You mean about our match?"

"Y-yes." Hinata answered.

"Yeah, I'm nervous. I know it's gonna be rough, but we both have our own dreams to fight for right?" Naruto replied.

"Hai!" Hinata answered.

"Then we're both just going to have to leave it all in the arena, and whoever's better will win." Naruto said earnestly, "No matter what happens, we won't let it affect our friendship, right?"

"Hai." Hinata nodded in agreement.

"Anyway, did you finish that awesome protection thingy?" Naruto inquired.

"N-not q-quite, I'm c-close to finishing it though." Hinata answered.

"Well, want to see if we can finish it?" Naruto asked.

"Huh? W-well I guess we can…" Hinata replied.

"Alright!" Naruto shouted as he took Hinata by the hand and lead her out to the clearing of the training area. Naruto then formed the signs for the Shadow Clone Jutsu, announced the technique, and made several dozen copies of himself, all clutching kunai. Hinata activated her Byakugan, and attempted to see that familiar array around herself.

"You ready?" all the Narutos announced in unison.

"Hai." Hinata said as she began to twirl her arms around herself, "Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms."

All the Narutos unleashed their kunai at Hinata, who proceeded to deftly stop or cut down all but 4 of the incoming projectiles.

"Wow! You're getting a lot better." Naruto said, "You got almost all of them."

"Th-thank you, Naruto-kun." Hinata said as she checked the minimal damage that the kunai inflicted. "Y-you mind going again?"

"No problem." Naruto replied as he and his clones readied more projectiles.

Again, Hinata strained to see that green array that accompanied the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms. She began the now familiar motions of her defensive jutsu.

"Here it comes!" all the Naruto's shouted as half of the leaped into the air to give a more variance to the attack. Hinata concentrated harder, suddenly, she could see it, the array was there.

"Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms!" Hinata said as her arms became nothing but a blue blur. At the end of the technique, all of the thrown projectiles were scattered about in various pieces.

"Was that it?!" Naruto shouted, "That was amazing, you got every single one."

"Th-that was it." Hinata answered shakily, "That's exactly what I was wanting to accomplish."

"Way to go, Hinata-chan! I knew you could do it!" Naruto shouted as he ran into embrace her.

"Th-thank you, Naruto-kun. I owe a lot of it to you." Hinata answered.

"Huh? I didn't really do anything." Naruto replied confused.

"N-no, you constantly helped m-me and told me I could achieve what I was trying to do. That was a l-lot for me, N-Naruto-kun." Hinata informed Naruto.

"Well, it seems we help each other out a lot, doesn't it?" Naruto said with a grin.

"Hai." Hinata agreed.

"Well, now that you've finished with that, what do we do know?" Naruto asked.

"How about we just relax and enjoy the rest of the time we have before the final rounds?" Hinata suggested.

"Yeah, I like that idea. Ero-sennin has been pushing me really hard over the last few weeks, I could use some rest." Naruto said as he flopped back on to the grass to stare at the sky.

Hinata giggled at Naruto before laying back on the grass beside him.

"I never can figure out what Shikamaru gets out of watching these things." Naruto said as he watched two clouds float lazily across the sky.

Hinata looked over at her crush before looking at the sky, "I don't know, it seems peaceful. I kind of enjoy it myself." She answered as she watched the same clouds float along.

"I guess…" Naruto answered, "I guess I'm not the type that likes to just sit around for long periods of time."

Hinata giggled again, "No, I guess you're not, Naruto-kun."

"Wanna go get dinner at Ichiraku's later?" Naruto asked out of the blue.

Hinata felt her face redden at the thought of a date with Naruto, even though they had been doing similar things for a couple of months, "Y-y-yes, I-I would like that." she finally managed to say.

"Great!" Naruto shouted as he sat up, "What should we do until dinner?"

"Can't we just stay here?" Hinata pleaded.

Naruto looked a little dejected at that, but he soon regained his grin, "Sure. Maybe something will come our way." Naruto said as he laid back down to stare at the sky again.

Hinata was just happy to be alone beside the one she loved, even if all they were doing was staring at clouds.

---------------------------------------

The next day, Konohagakure became a festival town. Nobles, important people, and spectators from all over the allied nations arrived to watch the final rounds of the Chuunin Exams. Vendors peddled their wares in the streets, all of the hotels in the area were full to bursting, and all the restaurants were bringing in record sales.

The visitors and townspeople were all excited about what this years finals promised. Word had gotten around that this should be the best Chuunin Exams seen in the past few years. The finals this year contained not only one of the last Uchihas, but also the last remaining Kousetsu who had taken up with Konoha after their clan hat been ran out of Kiri. Also the heiress of the Hyuuga clan was battling against an unknown that had beaten the Hyuuga clan's prodigy in the preliminaries. Also, the children of the Kazekage and several other prominent Konoha clans were battling in this Exam's finals, ensuring this to be one of the most eventful and exciting Chuunin Exams in the last few years.

--------------------------------

A/N

Bolded speech is obviously a bijuu or summon talking, but just to clarify, there ya go.

Thank you all for your outpouring of support. I hope I can continue to meet all of your expectations. I hope you have enjoyed the story so far, even if it has been nothing but a rehash of the original story so far, I do have plans for large sections of my own original content to come at a certain point in the future. Until then, enjoy Four Man Squads.


	8. Chapter 8 The Main Event

Four Man Squads

Chapter 8 - The Main Event

Naruto awoke early in the morning. Today was the day, it had all came to this. He would have to fight Hinata, his friend, on his quest to become Hokage. He quickly got himself ready, the rounds started at ten o'clock, and he wanted time to make sure he was loose and ready for the match.

After going through his usual routines after waking, Naruto stepped out of his apartment and into Konoha, and began making his way over to the arena, keeping an eye out for anyone he might know. He was especially keeping an eye out for Hinata, he really wanted a chance to talk to her before their fight.

Naruto had almost made his way to the arena, but he still had plenty of time before he had to be there, so he decided to make a detour to the training grounds where he had passed Obito's trial and truly became a genin. However, he saw two people he recognized, in a position he wasn't planning on finding them in.

"Hey, Haku!" Naruto yelled as he watched Haku stroll down the street with Ino firmly attached to one of his arms.

"Hello, Naruto." Haku replied as Naruto came close. Ino had let go of Haku's arm only to entwine her fingers with his.

"Hi, Naruto." Ino answered as well.

"What are you two doing together, and why are you holding hands?" Naruto asked.

"It's a long story." Haku said with a grin, "But, Ino-chan and I are dating."

"Huh? When did that happen?" Naruto asked in shocked disbelief.

"Well, Haku-kun came by my families flower shop a couple of days after the end of the preliminaries to buy flowers for Lee-san." Ino started the story.

"While I was there, Ino-chan took a liking to me." Haku said, "She was very persistent in getting me to date her." The last comment earned Haku a light slap to the back of the head from Ino.

"You make it sound like I forced you to go out with me." Ino stated.

"Sorry, Ino-chan." Haku apologized, "Anyway, to make a long story short, a couple of days later we went out for dinner and we really hit it off."

"Cool." Naruto responded after hearing their story, "I'm glad you seem to be happy in Konoha with us, and I'll have to get you to tell me the whole story later."

"Thank you, Naruto. Now, I must be getting to the arena, I need to prepare myself for my match." Haku said as he broke off contact with Ino.

"Good luck, and be safe, Haku-kun" Ino said sincerely.

"Always, Ino-chan." Haku replied as he lowered his head and gave Ino a chaste kiss. "Goodbye, Naruto-kun, good luck to you in your match as well."

"Thanks, Haku. I'll see you later, and good luck with your match. I've been looking forward to a rematch with you." Naruto answered as he gave a thumbs up and continued on his way to the training ground that held good memories for the blonde ninja.

------------------------------

Hinata was standing in front of the training stones, she had been going through a few warm-up exercises to prepare for her match with Naruto. Now, however, she was just trying to gather her thoughts on how she felt about fighting against the one she loved so much. She was torn. She wanted to prove to him, herself, and everyone else that she was stronger than everyone gave her credit for, but, on the other hand, she didn't think she could bear to cause any sort of pain to her crush and she would just forfeit on the spot.

"Hinata-chan?" a familiar voice called out behind her. She spun around to see Naruto standing in the clearing.

"H-hello, Naruto-kun. W-what are y-you doing here." Hinata replied.

"I came to get my head straight and maybe warm up a little before the beginning of the final rounds." Naruto answered. "You?"

"S-same for me. I was just wondering if I really want to go through with this…" Hinata said as she looked down at the ground.

"What do you mean? You have to do this." Naruto said supportively.

"B-b-but, w-we're f-friends, and… and I don't want to hurt you, Naruto-kun." Hinata said.

"Hinata-chan…" Naruto replied, "I know it's going to be difficult, but you have to do this for your dreams, just as I do. I know it sucks, but you can't give up on that dream. There won't be any hard feelings if you wipe the floor with me. You have to fight with everything you have, cause I will be as well."

"Hai." Hinata felt bolstered by Naruto's words, "Thank you. No hard feelings, no matter who wins?"

"You bet." Naruto said through a grin as he extended a hand, "I promise."

Hinata took his hand and they exchanged a handshake to seal their promise, "Deal."

"Well, I guess we should head on over to the arena, I think it's getting close to start time." Naruto said. Hinata nodded and the walked to the arena together.

A few minutes later Hinata and Naruto were standing in the middle of the arena grounds looking up at the stands. All the contestants for the final round were there, except It was a sight to behold, there were people from all the allied nations, not to mention that the Sandaime Hokage and Yondaime Kazekage were in attendance.

"Hey, quit gawking, turn and face the customers." Said a Konoha-nin none of the genin recognized, "This is the main event, and you guys are the stars."

The genins watched as the Hokage stood to address the audience, "Thanks to everyone for coming to Konoha's Chuunin Selection Exam. We will now be starting the main tournament matches between the twelve participants that made it through the preliminaries. Please stay and enjoy all of the matches."

"Now, there's something I'd like you all to look at." the unknown Konoha ninja said as he pulled out a piece of paper, "There's been some changes to the tournament since Dosu Kinuta had to drop out. So re-check the matches, please."

Naruto and Hinata both looked closely at the paper to see that the only real change was that their match was now Match Six instead of the preliminary match, and therefore they would be going last instead of first.

"Alright, guys," the proctor said, "this is the final test. The arena is different, but the rules are the same as the preliminaries. There are no holds barred, you fight until one of you is dead or admits defeat, and I'll stop the match if I deem that the fight is over. The first fight is Shiroi Wangetsu versus Tsuneni Tadashii. Therefore, I need those two to stay here while the rest of you head up to the waiting room."

------------------------

Naruto made his way up with the rest of the genins to the waiting room that looked out over the arena. Naruto took a good look at the circular arena, it had a little bit of everything. There were patches of grass and patched of dirt and sand, there was a small forested area in one section, and there was another area opposite of the trees that contained boulders and other large masses of stone. Naruto watched as the new proctor addressed the crowd.

"I am Genma Shiranui, and I will be refereeing the remaining rounds of the Chuunin Exams. Thank you all for coming." Genma announced, "Without further ado, match one of the final rounds, Shiroi Wangetsu versus Tsuneni Tadashii. Begin!"

Naruto watched as both contestants simply stared at each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Shiroi had already taken out his katana and Tsuneni had assumed her family's taijutsu stance, with a kunai in each hand.

The staring contest lasted only a moment before Shiroi ran into battle his katana clashing with Tsuneni's kunai. The battle so far was nothing but a melee battle, each contestant tried to gain the upper hand against the other. Shiroi's forms were perfect and precise, but Tsuneni's small body and her family's specialized taijutsu made her impossible to hit.

"I see you're not going to go down easy." Shiroi said as he clashed with Tsuneni again.

"I fully intend to make Chuunin here, Shiroi." Tsuneni replied blocking several of his strikes with her kunai before lashing out with a kick to Shiroi's midsection. The kick connected, but Shiroi managed to minimize the damage by flowing with the strike and separating himself from Tsuneni.

"Well, it seems I'm going to have to step this up a notch." Shiroi said as he whipped out another scroll and pulled out another katana to match his first one. "Are you ready, Tsuneni?"

Tsuneni merely released her two front fingers from one of her kunai and made a beckoning motion to Shiroi. Shiroi quickly complied as he redoubled his efforts. This time, the battle was all Shiroi, his blades moving too fast for Tsuneni to accurately dodge and block while trying to sneak in attacks. Tsuneni soon suffered some small cuts to her arms an legs, but nothing to critical.

"This is getting out of hand." Tsuneni said, "Ronrimaru!"

Similar to what happened in the preliminaries Tsuneni became nothing but a small blur circling around Shiroi. Shiroi, however for his part, looked calmly ahead, attempting to analyze the attack that was getting ready to come his way. Then, it began, Shiroi became a blur of movement at the same time that Tsuneni's perfect circle of a blur began to distort as she rushed in to make her attacks. The rings of metal clashing with metal rang through the arena as Shiroi deftly blocked each of Tsuneni's strikes.

"I can't hold out against this much longer." Shiroi said as he felt a slice to the back of his left knee, "Damn, she's starting to get through. I'm going to have to stop this." Shiroi stood up and crossed his blades in front of him, even while Tsuneni continued to cut him up. "Dance of Roses: Lavender!"

The sight of Shiroi's new attack was something to behold. He suddenly began to spin as a heavenly lavender hue came over his blades and as his rotation picked up momentum the lavender color blurred and streaked seeming becoming a large dancing lavender flower. Tsuneni didn't have time to appreciate the beauty of the attack, it caught her completely off guard as it lifted her up into the air. She felt several cuts open over the front of her body before blasting her away from Shiroi. She skidded across the ground.

"That was rough." Tsuneni said as she returned to her feet, "Well, Ronrimaru is out of the question. Maybe it's time for something a little different. Tatakimasu Ogawa!" Tsuneni again became a blur and raced towards Shiroi who was coming out of his Dance of Roses: Lavender. Shiroi realized what was coming to him however, and made ready his counter attack.

"Dance of Roses: Yellow!" Shiroi yelled as his blades lost the lavender tint they held and gained a yellow one. He took one step forward to meet Tsuneni's incoming attack. The resulting flashes of yellow were accompanied by Tsuneni's blurred visage trying to strike out at Shiroi through the counter attack. The resulting sound was deafening, it was like the sound of nails running down a chalkboard, only magnified tenfold. What was happening though was that Tsuneni's kunai were meeting Shiroi's blades so fast that one couldn't tell when one exchange stopped and another started by sound.

Finally, both attacks stopped and both fighters sat staring at each other panting hard. Neither had really expected to be pushed as hard as they were in the opening round.

"Well, it seems we are both almost out of it." Shiroi said in a slightly bored tone.

"Yes, it seems so." Tsuneni replied indifferently.

"Here we go then." Shiroi said as he charged for what he hoped was the last attack of this fight. Tsuneni also steeled herself and prepared for the incoming attack. Shiroi began to slash and stab at Tsuneni while she began to dodge and block.

Shiroi began to realize that he was getting nowhere, with both of them running low on steam neither could gain the upper hand. He could try to go for the Dance of Roses: Pink, but he was fairly certain he didn't have the chakra to pull it off, and, if he was right, he'd be next to powerless from Tsuneni winning the match. From what he could see he had one chance at winning this fight. Shiroi dropped one of his katana to the side and began to focus enough chakra into his remaining blade. Then with what he knew was going to be the final attack he could muster that would have enough strength to win the fight he made a wide cut which Tsuneni ducked under easily and immediately came back with a downward slash. Tsuneni had nowhere to go as the follow-up attack came too fast, so she raised both of her kunai to block. As soon as metal touched metal, the kunai in Tsuneni's hands shattered and she caught Shiroi's blade square in her shoulder.

"What?" Tsuneni asked as she collapsed.

"I focused enough of my chakra into my blade that combined with the strength of my blow it would shatter the iron commonly used to make kunai. As long as you didn't have those kunai specially made, I could carve through your defense. Luckily, my gamble paid off." Shiroi said as he dropped to one knee. Tsuneni promptly passed out from blood loss. A team of med-nins rushed out to the field.

"Winner of the first match, Shiroi Wangetsu!" Genma shouted for the audience to hear. The announcement was met with an uprising of cheers. Shiroi looked around at the crowd as they continued cheering. He simply raised his hand in a sort of half-wave before beginning to make his way up to the waiting area.

"The next match is Temari Sukimakaze versus Shikamaru Nara. Fighters please come to the arena floor." Genma instructed and announced as soon as the crowd died down enough to be heard over.

------------------------------------------

Shikamaru sighed as he made his way down to the arena floor. This was going to be troublesome, he knew, but he couldn't let himself lose to a girl. That would just be embarrassing. His opponent, a scary woman with a big fan, didn't say anything as they made their way to the battle ground.

Soon, Shikamaru was facing Temari as Genma announced the start of their match. "This match is a bother, and I really don't care about being a Chuunin, but I can't lose to a girl." Shikamaru said lazily as the match started. Temari didn't take to kindly at the comment and immediately tried to whack Shikamaru in the head with her fan. Shikamaru dodged backwards to make some space between him and her, but she opened her fan and attempted to blast him away. Shikamaru quickly dodged into the trees for cover.

"Hah, you seem to be an expert at running away!" Temari taunted.

"GO SHIKAMARU! BUST HER UP WITH A SIXTEEN HIT COMBO!" Shikamaru hear Ino shout. _Troublesome woman, I can't just go around hitting girls. _Shikamaru thought, _Why did I have to fight a girl._ Shikamaru looked up to the sky, _Man those clouds are so free, must be nice._

"Wind Scythe Jutsu!" Temari yelled as she launched one of her stronger attacks. The wind whipped violently against the trees Shikamaru was hiding behind, but he was covered. Apparently, she wasn't planning on making things easy for him. Shikamaru then stretched his shadow out of the shade of the trees and attempted to catch Temari with it. However, Temari had seen his preliminary match, and wisely ducked out of the way. She noticed that Shikamaru's shadow could only stretch so far and she marked the place with her fan. _Good girl, _Shikamaru thought.

"I've seen through your Shadow Possession Jutsu. There's a limit to how much you can stretch, shrink, and otherwise manipulate your shadow. No matter how you manipulate it, it has to retain the same surface area." Temari analyzed Shikamaru's jutsu effectively. It was just what he was wanting. Shikamaru hid again behind a tree and placed his hands in his comfortable thinking posture. He'd laid the groundwork, now he needed the plan to catch her. After a about half a minute of analyzing the situation Shikamaru had his plan.

"Oh, looks like your ready to get serious." Temari taunted again as she readied herself for whatever came her way, "But there's no use in hiding, Wind Scythe Jutsu!"

Shikamaru quickly took off his jacket and used his forehead protector to tie a kunai to it. _Come on, one more time._

"How long are you going to keep running away? Just give up already!" Temari yelled as she sent another blast of wind his way. Shikamaru let his jacket ride the wind and get launched into the air. As a distraction, he threw another kunai at Temari, which she easily blocked with her fan, and attempted to catch her in the Shadow Possession Jutsu. He watched as her eyes widened in shock as his shadow stretched a tad over her line. However, Temari quickly realized what was happening and dodged backwards again.

"Very good." Shikamaru complimented, "You saw through that."

"I see. You were whittling away the time letting the sun sink lower and stretch your shadows." Temari remarked.

"Temari! Above you!" Kankuro yelled from the waiting room. Temari looked up and saw Shikamaru's trap. _Gotcha, _Shikamaru thought. Using the new shadow to stretch his own, and drive her over to the rocks near the other side of the arena. Temari realizing the trick hid behind her fan. She began to weave the signs for the Clone Jutsu, but her body stopped.

"No way, impossible." Temari said shocked that she had been caught.

"Finally, Shadow Possession Jutsu is a success." Shikamaru said.

"How, your shadow shouldn't stretch that far?" Temari questioned.

"Oh, I'll show you then." Shikamaru said as he allowed Temari to look around by moving his head, and thus her own. She finally saw what had happened. A thread thin string of shadow stretched along the ring of the arena and connected with the rocks behind her, and used that jump to connect to hers.

"So you weren't using you're whole shadow and were sneaking it behind me." Temari said. Shikamaru just smirked as he walked out of his hiding place and forced her to walk towards him. Shikamaru then raised both of their hands, Temari just sat there and cringed, knowing she had lost.

"That's it, I give up." Shikamaru said.

"What?" Temari replied incredulously.

"I give up." Shikamaru affirmed then explained, "Constant use of the Shadow Possession Jutsu has left me low on chakra. I barely got enough to hold you for about ten more seconds. I thought of about two hundred moves to try to win, but nothing would work out. Anyways, I'm tired of this, one match is enough for me."

Genma just looked at Shikamaru and shrugged, "Winner of match two, Temari Sukimakaze."

The crowd was stunned. Shocked that Shikamaru had just given up when he had gotten the upper hand. However, the ninjas in the crowd looked at the lazy genius with new found respect. While he hadn't won the match, if he was in the field, he would have just won a battle for his squad as his team would have been able to kill the target after he paralyzed them. His obvious ability to plan out a strategy so many moves ahead of his opponent was definite Chuunin material, even though he may have lost his match, he quite possibly would make the rank of Chuunin.

Genma let the crowd calm down a little before announcing the next match, "Match three, Kankuro Sukimakaze versus Haku Kousetsu. Fighters, please come down to he arena floor."

"I give up!" Kankuro yelled. The crowd became a chorus of boos and Genma did nothing but shrug.

"Winner of match three, Haku Kousetsu," Genma announced and kept the action rolling to prevent a riot, "Match four, Chouji Akimichi versus Shino Aburame. If the fighters would please come down to the floor."

---------------------

Shino and Chouji looked each other down while awaiting the start of their match. Neither had anything against the other, but both of them were determined to win this match and prove that they were Chuunin material. Determination radiated off of both genin in waves.

"Match four, Chouji Akimichi versus Shino Aburame, begin!" Genma announced the start of the match.

Shino immediately tried to get his kikai bugs to get to Chouji and start draining him of chakra, however they didn't make it in time. Chouji whipped a couple of wires holding kunai around himself, signed, and launched into his signature jutsu, "Expansion Jutsu!"

Chouji's form blew up like a balloon. Some of Shino's bugs finally got to Chouji, but they were jarred loose before they could eat off too much chakra. Chouji began to roll as he pulled his head an limbs into his spherical body, "Spiked Human Boulder!"

This spiked version of Chouji's boulder form was much faster and more powerful than the normal Human Boulder technique. Shino guessed that the addition of the spikes gave Chouji better traction. Shino realized he was in trouble, lots of trouble. His insects couldn't safely land to suck out Chouji's chakra. Shino needed a plan and fast. First things first he needed to stop Chouji. Remembering Chouji's earlier fight, if Shino could just avoid him long enough, Chouji might make a similar attack that he used in the preliminaries.

Shino did exactly has he planned, he ran. He dodged time and again as Chouji tore the arena grounds apart, uprooting trees and crushing boulders. The game of cat and mouse went on for a few minutes. Shino was mildly surprised when Chouji allowed his jutsu to fade and returned to his normal size. Shino didn't waste any time though, he immediately sent out his bugs to attack the chunky genin.

"Partial Expansion Jutsu: Arm!" Chouji announced the name of his new attack and his arms grew massively large and slammed Shino against the wall. The attack was unexpected. Shino cursed his oversight, he should have known Chouji would have learned new jutsus. Shino quickly adapted his plan to this new information.

Chouji seeing that Shino's bugs were getting too close for comfort switched it back up, "Expansion Jutsu! Spiked Human Boulder!" Chouji became a rolling spiked ball once again, not allowing the bugs to have a chance to find a safe place to land on him and suck out his chakra. However, Chouji couldn't see effectively in that form and missed the fact that Shino had began calling more of his bugs to himself, preparing for the next time Chouji decided to break out of the unstoppable tank form.

After another few minutes of playing cat and mouse Chouji again stopped his Human Boulder attack. He was close to a wall when he did so, so he placed his feet on the wall and used his new jutsu to propel himself at amazing speed from the wall, Shino had no chance to dodge. Chouji's head slammed firmly into Shino's midsection. Chouji didn't let up as he began to slam his fists into Shino. However, it wasn't Shino. All the places Chouji hit had turned into bugs. Shino had lured Chouji into a trap, now there was no chance to get away, Shino's insects quickly and efficiently did their job of draining Chouji of his chakra. Shino dropped his Disguise Jutsu from behind a rock and walked over to the now falling body of Chouji.

"You fought well." Shino complemented his fellow Konoha shinobi as Chouji lost consciousness.

"Winner of match four, Shino Aburame!" Genma announced to a roar from the crowd. Shino merely stood in the middle of the arena, soaking up the praise and attention, but making no outward signs of doing so. He could see the swarms of bugs coming from some of his family members. He knew they were proud of him. Shino quietly made his way back to the waiting room. He began to go through strategies to use against his next round opponent, Haku Kousetsu. However, he knew so little about the new Konoha ninja that he couldn't formulate anything solid based on his observations thus far.

"Match five, Gaara of the Desert versus Sasuke Uchiha! Fighters please come down to the arena floor." An audible buzz lit up the arena, this was THE fight. This was the main event, the one fight everyone was waiting for, the son of the Kazekage versus the only survivor of the Uchiha Massacre. It promised to be one epic match.

----------------------------

Sasuke stared at the redheaded boy in front of him. Sasuke didn't get to watch any of the preliminary fights, but he was told about his first round opponent by the members of his team and Obito had told him things that Obito had heard from Asuma, Kurenai, and Guy. He mastered high-speed movement taijutsu just for this fight. Sasuke knew that Gaara was strong, ridiculously so. The fact that he had beaten Rock Lee only proved Gaara's strength to Sasuke. Sasuke was surprised to hear Gaara chuckle.

_What the hell is he laughing about? _Sasuke thought.

"Match five, Gaara of the Desert versus Sasuke Uchiha, begin!" Genma announced the start of the match.

As soon as the match began sand began to pour out of the gourd on Gaara's back. _So that's the sand everyone was talking about._ Sasuke thought to himself as he leapt away from the danger. However, as soon as Gaara started he stopped, clutching his head.

"Don't get… so angry…" Gaara said to himself more than anyone there, "…Mother."

_What the hell is he talking about? Is he mentally unstable?_ Sasuke thought as he watched Gaara's fit of insanity.

"I fed you some nasty blood earlier," Gaara continued, "I'm sorry…but this time… it will be delicious." Suddenly Gaara let out a small gasp of pain then he seemingly returned to normal, he looked up at Sasuke, "Come."

"Alright, you got it." Sasuke said as he launched a couple of shuriken at Gaara, only to see them imbed into sand that had raised to block for Gaara. After blocking, the sand started to turn into a Gaara clone. Sasuke ran in to do battle when the clone's midsection burst outwards in an attempt to attack him. Sasuke jumped into the air to dodge the attack, and the clone responded by throwing Sasuke's shuriken back at him, to which Sasuke responded with his own shuriken knocking the ones thrown by the clone out of the air. Sasuke descended into a kick which the sand clone blocked. Sasuke immediately put his hands to the ground and used his momentum to spin himself into a powerful backhand aimed at the clones throat. The clones head and neck soon tried to trap Sasuke's hand and arm in sand, Sasuke responded with a palm thrust to the clones forehead. The blow had sufficient force to dispel the clone. Sasuke then charged in to attempt a punch Gaara directly in the face. The sand raised to block the incoming blow.

Sasuke smirked, this was what he hat been training for the entire month. Suddenly, Sasuke flashed out of existence and reappeared behind Gaara, his movements almost and exact copy of Lee's taijutsu. The sand couldn't keep up, and Sasuke planted his fist firmly into Gaara's jaw. Sasuke watched as some sand flecked off of Gaara's face.

"So that's the Armor of Sand." Sasuke stated as he assumed Lee's stance and flicked the fingers of his outstretched hand in a beckoning gesture, "Come on."

Gaara sent out a wave of sand to tackle Sasuke, but the Uchiha was to fast. Using his Lee-like speed, Sasuke circled behind Gaara again and planted his foot into Gaara's face. The sand raised an caught Gaara's body as he flew threw the air. Sasuke stood there with his foot still in the air from the kick. "What's wrong? Is that it?" Sasuke asked as he let his foot down.

_I'll rip that armor from his body_. Sasuke thought as he began his attack anew. The battle was extremely one-sided as Sasuke set out to accomplish his mission. Sasuke landed a punishing series of blows, ending in a knee to Gaara's gut. Sasuke stood where he was panting slightly from the use of the high-speed taijutsu. Gaara was on his knees pieces of the Armor of Sand crumbling from his body. However, Gaara stood back up, and immediately began wrapping himself in a cocoon of sand.

Sasuke saw this and attempted to rush in to hit Gaara before he could wrap himself completely in sand. However, he wasn't fast enough, and as he attempted to hit Gaara spikes flew out of the sand, one grazing his cheek, drawing blood. Another spike also caught him on his upper arm drawing blood as well.

_So he's wrapped himself completely in sand, and it gets extremely hard when it's packed so tight. It's an absolute defense. _Sasuke thought as blood dripped from his knuckles where his fist had impacted the sand. Sasuke watched as an eyeball appeared over the sand cocoon. Sasuke attempted to rush the sphere again, this time he stopped short when he saw that the sand would form spike to impale him on wherever he tried to attack.

_As I thought, it's no good. I don't what he's up to hiding in there, but it's fine. My jutsu takes a while too. _Sasuke thought as he leapt up one of the walls and began to sign. "Chidori!" Sasuke's hand lit up with lightning and the sound of a thousand chirping birds filled the stadium. Sasuke then plunged himself towards the sphere and watched as his chakra charged hand pierced into the sand cocoon.

"I've got you." Sasuke said as he looked at the sphere with the aid of his Sharingan. With the Sharingan active, Sasuke had been able to turn his body to where the spikes wouldn't impale him.

An inhuman, bloodcurdling scream erupted from inside the sand cocoon. "Blood…my… My blood!" where the scream erupting from the sphere. Sasuke suddenly felt pain in his arm as the cocoon began to crush it. Sasuke charged up his lightning chakra and force his arm out of the cocoon, only to see another, non-human arm follow his out of the shell. Sasuke kneeled to recuperate as the sand cocoon began to crack, but he caught some flash inside the hole he had made, a golden eye. Before Sasuke could really think about it, the sphere collapsed, and Gaara was standing there holding on to the injury that had been inflicted to his left shoulder. Gaara stared at the Uchiha.

_No, it wasn't those eyes._ Sasuke thought, _What the hell was that thing? It was looking right at me._

"Operation start!" Sasuke heard someone from the stands yell. He turned to look and saw that most of the crowd appeared to be asleep. In fact, only ninjas seemed to be moving. Sasuke turned his attention back to his opponent who was now on his knees clutching his head.

An older Sand-nin descended and spoke to Gaara, "Gaara, the plan…"

Soon, Gaara was joined by his siblings. "I knew it…" Temari stated.

"What's wrong?" Kankuro asked.

"Baka, trying transform before the signal was given." the older man scolded.

"He's experiencing the side effects, it's impossible to continue now." Temari said.

"Then what are we supposed to do?! Do it without Gaara?!" Kankuro yelled.

"Take him to Chiyoko, she can heal him." the older man ordered, "Afterwards, commence with the attack. Go."

"Hai, Baki-sensei." Temari said as she took off with Kankuro, who was carrying Gaara.

"Is the leader of this party Orochimaru?" Genma asked Baki.

"Who knows? Let's just join in on the fun." Baki replied.

"Hey! What's going on?" Sasuke asked.

"Sorry, but the Chuunin Exams are now over. Go pursue Gaara and make sure he doesn't escape. You're already at the Chuunin level, and you're a Konoha ninja, so make yourself useful."

Sasuke just groaned, but did as he was told. He leapt over the arena wall, in hot pursuit of the Sand siblings.

-------------------------

Sakura felt the genjutsu begin to hit her, using her training she quickly dispelled the jutsu with the release technique. She looked around to see Ino sleeping beside her. Obito, Rin, Might Guy, and another man she didn't know were all standing together.

"Looks like old Team Minato is back together again." Obito said with a smile.

"Yosh!" Guy exclaimed giving Obito the thumbs up.

"Yeah, great." the man Sakura did not know said rather exasperatedly.

"Oh, come on Kakashi, I know you missed Guy as much as the rest of us." Rin teased the gray-haired leader of ANBU.

"Guys, I really hate to break up the family reunion." Obito said, "But it looks like we have a little company." Obito gestured to the Oto-nins that had surrounded them.

"Oh ho, such a large number. Obito, Kakashi how about a contest. Who ever takes out the most wins. If I remember the current standing is you and Kakashi with thirty-three wins, and I have thirty-four."

Obito gave Guy one of his trademark grins, "You're on, Guy."

"Whatever…" Kakashi stated, he was already tired of this.

"Umm… what the hell is that?" Rin pointed up at a purple box that had appeared at the top of the building where the kages had been watching. Obito had activated his Sharingan to get a better look at it.

"It's a barrier ninjutsu." Obito stated.

"Look inside of it." Kakashi said. Even though he didn't have the Sharingan, Obito knew Kakashi had sharp eyes.

"…Orochimaru." Guy whispered the name.

"Orochimaru!" Sakura exclaimed, "Sasuke-kun." Sakura turned to look in the arena to see that Sasuke was gone. "Sasuke-kun is gone!"

Suddenly, Sakura felt a wave of murderous intent wash over her as two Oto shinobi rushed at her. However before they could kill her two blurs stopped them dead in their tracks. Both Oto-nins had kunai in their skulls thanks to Kakashi and Guy.

"Just hang out here for a second, Sakura." Obito instructed, "We're going to thin out the numbers a little bit."

Sakura nodded and then turned her attention to the woman who had been one of her main instructors for the last few months. Rin Uchiha was a beautiful woman, her brown hair was cut in a style very much similar to Sakura's, and she wore the bandages over her cheeks as she always did. Rin didn't have any scars there or wounds, but she always wore those small rectangular bandages. She had different colors, today she was wearing Uchiha blue and red. Sakura had never seen Rin fight before. Watching the elder medic-nin was like watching poetry in motion, she deftly dodged, blocked, and striked in one fluid motion, like a flowing river.

"That's eight." Guys called out.

"Seven." Obito replied.

Kakashi sighed, "Five."

Rin looked over at the boys, "You guys are getting out of practice."

"Oh, how many you got?" Obito asked.

Rin planted her foot into Oto-nin's chin then plunged a kunai into his chest, "Eleven."

Obito grinned at her, and Guy look a little flustered. Kakashi didn't seem to care, he kept stealing glances up to the barrier.

"You have your guys up there, right?" Obito asked his old friend and rival.

"Yeah." Kakashi replied.

"Then stop worrying about him. He's not the Hokage for nothing, you know." Obito tried to ease his friends fears, "We have our own problems to deal with at the moment. Sakura!"

Sakura looked up at her sensei, "Hai."

"Good job on your genjutsu training, I need you to go down to the waiting room and wake Naruto, Hinata, Haku, and Shikamaru. You're getting a mission. Naruto will probably be ecstatic."

"What's the mission, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"This is an A-rank mission, like the Land of Waves mission." Obito answered.

"An A-rank mission, now?" Sakura asked. She couldn't believe what was happening, a mission, now, of all times.

"Sasuke is in pursuit of Gaara and those other Suna genin. You are to wake up the others, and pursue Sasuke and help him subdue those Suna-nins. There's something weird about that Gaara boy, I think Sasuke will need your help. Kakashi?" Obito filled Sakura in.

"Yeah, I got it." Kakashi said as he cut his thumb open and made some signs, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

In a puff of smoke, a small dog popped up, "Yo."

"We're taking this small doggy with us?" Sakura asked.

"Don't call me a cute little doggy." the dog said.

_I didn't say cute… _Sakura thought as she suppressed her surprise that the dog could actually talk.

"Pakkun here will be able to track Sasuke by his scent." Kakashi informed her.

"Now, make your way down to the waiting room and gather the others, and begin your mission." Obito explained as he took out another Oto-nin with a pair of kunai to the chest. "We'll cover your retreat."

"Hai." Sakura said as she stealthily made her way down to the waiting room. When she finally made it down there she found Shino, Naruto, Hinata, and Shikamaru all laying there fast asleep. However, neither Haku nor Shiroi were anywhere to be found.

"Kai!" Sakura said as she tapped Naruto on the leg. Naruto stirred from his slumber.

"What's going on?" Naruto said as he rubbed his eyes.

"I'll tell you later, just stay down." Sakura instructed, "Kai." This time Sakura tapped Hinata.

"Genjutsu…" was all that Hinata said as she woke up. She looked around. "What are we doing?"

Sakura looked at Shikamaru, "You know how to dispel genjutsu. Why are you playing possum?"

"I didn't feel like getting attacked." Shikamaru stated as he sat up. "So what's the plan?"

"We are to track down Sasuke, and assist him in taking down Gaara and the other Suna ninjas." Sakura informed them, "This is an A-rank mission."

"What about Shino?" Naruto asked.

"Obito-sensei didn't say anything about him." Sakura answered honestly.

"It's okay." Shino said as he sat up.

"You were playing possum too?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, trying to gather information on what was going on before I made a move. I would like to accompany you on this mission, but I believe that I should help take care of the threat inside the stadium with the others. I will attempt to rendezvous with the other members of my clan. Good luck on your mission." Shino said as he left them to complete their own mission.

"Alright, so are we off?" Naruto asked.

"This way!" Pakkun said as he leapt away from the waiting room and the arena. Sakura, Hinata, and Naruto all followed suit.

"I don't even care about Sasuke that much." Shikamaru complained as they all left, "Damn, this is so troublesome."

As they made their way out of Konoha and into the surrounding forest, Sakura filled in the others on what was going on.

"Sasuke… He got too anxious." Naruto said as he took of from another tree branch.

"Like you'd do anything different." Sakura replied.

"Why did I get assigned to this mission, it's a damn chore." Shikamaru complained.

"It can't be helped. It was Obito-sensei's orders." Sakura replied.

"This way!" Pakkun said as he quickly changed direction. Pakkun sniffed the air a bit, "Come on guys, pick up the pace."

"W-what's w-wrong?" Hinata asked.

"There's eight… no, nine guys following us." Pakkun informed them.

"Already? You've got to be kidding." Shikamaru complained.

"It doesn't seem like they have a fix on our true position yet, but they're closing in while on the lookout for surprise attacks." Pakkun said.

"Crap, they're probably all Chuunin or higher, if they catch us, we're dead meat." Shikamaru said.

"In that case, shouldn't we ambush 'em!" Naruto shouted, "We'd surely have an advantage if we ambush them. Even if they have twice our number, as long as we can surprise them…"

"It's no use. They're subordinates of Orochimaru, and he was originally from Konoha." Pakkun cut Naruto off.

"Geez, I thought we might have been able to pull it off, but I guess not." Shikamaru said.

"What does that have anything to do with it?" Sakura asked.

"Listen," Shikamaru explained, "An ambush is a simple tactic that is very favorable for the user, but there are two conditions that need to be met to ensure a successful ambush. First, the fleeing party must be able to move without making noise and find the enemy first. Second, You have to locate and conceal yourselves in an area where you can take them off guard and ensure maximum damage. Only when both conditions are met is an ambush an effective tactic. The first isn't hard to do with Pakkun's nose and Hinata's eyes. However, it would seem we could attain the second condition considering this is our home, but they are subordinates of Orochimaru, who is originally from Konoha. They are probably ninjas specially trained in the hunt, and have practiced and memorized the layout of the area around Konoha. They will avoid following us into any area that would allow us to ensure condition two."

Shikamaru had come up with his own plan while he was going through his explanation, "Tactics are about coming up with the best plan after fully grasping the pieces available to you in the given situation. After analyzing the situation, there's only one course of action we can take."

"O-one action?" Hinata spoke up.

"Yes, we need to create a diversion that looks like an ambush. One of us will have to remain behind and fake an ambush to delay them." Shikamaru explained.

"So, a decoy." Sakura replied.

"That's right, if the one can stall them they'll lose the rest of us. However, the one who stays behind will probably die." Shikamaru answered. "So who's going to do it? Pakkun is necessary to the operation, so…"

Everyone was silent for a few seconds when Naruto spoke up, "Okay, I understand, I'll…"

Shikamaru interrupted him, "I guess I'm the only one."

"What?" Sakura asked.

"Why you?" Naruto added.

Shikamaru sighed, "I'm the one who has the best chance of pulling off this tactic and surviving, because the Shadow Possession Jutsu was originally created as a delaying tactic. I'll catch up with you guys later, so hurry."

"Shikamaru, we're depending on you." Naruto said as he leapt to leave his comrade behind.

_Was he always this dependable?_ Sakura pondered.

The remaining genins continued on for a little while before Pakkun spoke up, "Hey the enemies are getting closer, is he really delaying them."

"He can't have ran away, could he?" Sakura exclaimed.

"No way!" Naruto shouted, "He's got a bad mouth and he acts like everything is a chore, but he isn't the type to betray people."

----------------------------

Shikamaru looked up at the clouds. They were so free, like he wanted to be. No cares in the world, nothing to trouble you, that would be the life.

"Finally made good on my escape somehow." Shikamaru said to himself, he stretched his shadow out and snared the eight Oto-nins with the Shadow Possession Jutsu, "Or, rather, I was supposed to be a guy who could say something like that." He showed a set of five sticks to the tracking squad, "Just for your information, this was the origin of the dog tracks."

"Well, look at this, just a kid." one the enemy ninjas said, "To think we'd be caught by a kid. This must be the infamous Shadow Binding Jutsu."

"Heh, that's a really old name, it's called the Shadow Possession Jutsu now." Shikamaru said. _Damn, it's like I thought. That match was a bad idea, I'm out of chakra. I won't be able to hold these guys for long. _Shikamaru thought, _Oh well, let's find where he could be hiding._ Shikamaru wielded a few shuriken and kunai that he hid on awkward places on his body, places most people wouldn't keep weapons. So, while he had weapons, the enemies were grabbing nothing but air. He then releases his weapon, and watched as they were met by shuriken from the trees to his right. _Over there._

Shikamaru tried to stretch out his shadow to catch the last guy, however the shadow moved extremely slowly and wouldn't move into the trees. _Shit, the speed won't increase, and I'm out of chakra._

"It's useless, we already know all your techniques." one of the Oto shinobi taunted, "Looks like your at the end of your rope. This so called Shadow Possession will be released soon, are you prepared?"

_I guess this is it. _Shikamaru thought to himself, then he sighed and looked up at the clouds, _I was going to be an average ninja and earn a decent salary. I would marry a regular girl who was neither too pretty or too ugly. We'd have two kids, first a girl, then a boy. I'd retire when my oldest girl got married and my son became independent. After that, I'd play shogi and go all day long, living a relaxed and easy retired life. Then I'd die of old age before my wife. That was the life I wanted, but I had to go and try my best, which is so unlike me. I wanted to end normally, but I had to go and do such a troublesome thing here. _"Like you said, looks like I reached my limit." Shikamaru said as his shadow retracted.

"How about coming out now?" the Oto-nin said to the one of their number who was hiding in the trees, "And lop his head off for him while your at it."

Shikamaru flinched as someone dropped down behind him, "Heh, finally caught up to you."

Shikamaru recognized that voice, and he spun around to look up into a familiar bearded face, "Asuma-sensei, why?"

Shikamaru's question was never answered though as Asuma quickly took down all the Oto-nins with his trench knives.

--------------------------

Sasuke had finally caught up to the fleeing Suna genins. He landed on a branch in front of the fleeing trio.

"You can't escape." Sasuke said.

"Temari, take Gaara and go to Chiyoko." Kankuro said, handing is injured younger brother to Temari.

"Okay, be safe." Temari said as she took Gaara and left.

"Looks like there's no turning back, I'll be your opponent." Kankuro said to Sasuke.

"I'm afraid you are incorrect, I'll be your opponent." A familiar voice called out from the forest.

"It's you…" Kankuro said as he recognized the ninja coming to them.

"What are you doing here, Haku?" Sasuke said.

"I'm sorry, I immediately followed you after you left the arena. You go on ahead and fight Gaara, Sasuke. He is your opponent. Kankuro here is mine." Haku said as he dropped to the same branch that Sasuke occupied.

"You're awfully confident, Haku. Sure you can take him?" Sasuke said.

"I managed to handle you and Naruto alright didn't I?" Haku teased as he smiled at the Uchiha. "I'll keep him off your back, don't worry." Sasuke nodded and left.

"You guys have no idea." Kankuro said, "I don't think you guys have experienced true terror."

"If you only knew." Haku said sadly.

Kankuro made ready his puppet as Haku readied his senbon needles. Kankuro made the first move as he made Karasu launch himself at Haku. Haku deftly dodged the attacks of the puppet. Kankuro hid in the underbrush as Haku was busy dodging Karasu.

"Seems like he's a long distance type, could be bad." Haku said to himself. "I gotta deal with this puppet, I know Kaen melted the things joints, but I don't know fire jutsu. Maybe I can freeze him solid."

Haku started forming the one-handed signs that signified he was using his clans secret jutsus. "Secret Jutsu: Touch of the Ice God!" Haku's hands then settled with a soft blue glow. Haku then refocused his efforts into stopping Karasu. As Haku blocked various blows coming from the puppet, any part of the puppet touched by Haku's hands froze and was incased in ice.

"What the hell is he doing?" Kankuro wondered allowed as he watched Haku then deliver a solid shot to a frozen section of Karasu's leg. Kankuro's mouth dropped as Karasu's leg shattered like glass. "What is it with these damn Konoha ninjas and destroying my poor puppets?"

Haku continued doing this until Karasu was nothing more than scrap littering the forest floor. Kankuro cursed, this wasn't what he was expecting. He called up Karasu's head and moved to stab Haku in the back. However, before Karasu could get there, Haku disappeared into a mirror of ice.

"What the hell?" Kankuro said aloud as Karasu hit the mirror and simply bounced off it.

"How do you like it, the Demon Ice Mirrors?" Haku said as he reappeared from a mirror behind Kankuro.

"How did you find me?" Kankuro said as two senbon pierced his neck putting him into a near death state.

Haku was nice enough to answer the question, even though Kankuro couldn't hear the answer, "It was quite hard, actually. I had to litter the whole area with mirrors, and just got lucky." Haku fell to one knee and the mirror around him cracked and dissipated. "Damn, used all my chakra to find him. I'm sorry Sasuke, but you're on your own…" Haku fell asleep beside the incapacitated Kankuro.

--------------------------

Naruto, Hinata, Sakura, and Pakkun hurried. They knew something was up, they felt an major spike in chakra ahead of them, there was no mistaking that chakra, it was Gaara's. Soon after Gaara's chakra spiked, they felt a sickening chakra none of them had felt in over a month. Hinata had never felt it, but Naruto and Sakura recognized it as the chakra Sasuke gave off when the curse mark was active back in the Forest of Death.

"I can see them." Hinata said, Byakugan active, "What in the world is that?"

"What is it, Hinata?" Sakura asked as she kept up the pace.

"I-I-I…. d-don't know." Hinata said, fear evident in her voice, "I-it kinda looks like G-Gaara, in a way. B-but… he doesn't look human."

"What?" Sakura asked.

"He must be releasing his demon." Naruto said as he gripped his stomach.

"You mean he's like you?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, Shikamaru and I caught him trying to kill Lee in the hospital, and he said things. His life was so much like mine until I found Teuchi, Iruka-sensei, and you guys. But, he never had anyone, he went through his whole life alone." Naruto replied.

"Get ready." Pakkun said, "We're almost there.

A few moments later Team 7 blasted through the forest into the area in which Gaara and Sasuke were facing off. Naruto stared in horror at a half-transformed Gaara. With a tail, and a transformed right arm and face, Gaara was almost unrecognizable. Naruto saw Gaara lunge at a prone Sasuke, who wasn't making a move to get out of the way or block.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled. Naruto moved like a flash and kicked Gaara in the chin, diverting him away from Sasuke. Naruto landed on a branch in front of Sasuke. Hinata landed beside him, while Sakura and Pakkun landed behind him to check on Sasuke.

"**You're the one I failed to kill that time.**" Gaara stated, the demon clearly present in his voice. Hinata flinched, it was one of the most terrifying things she had ever seen or heard.

"Everyone get away! Now!" Naruto yelled, however it was too late. Gaara whizzed by him and Hinata, going straight for Sasuke.

"**Die, Sasuke Uchiha!**" Gaara yelled as he charged at Sasuke. However, Sakura stood in front of him blocking his path. So, instead Gaara attacked her, pinning her to a tree with a demonic hand made of sand**.**

"Sakura!" Hinata gasped as she watched her teammate brutally crash into the tree.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled, as he rushed and grabbed Sasuke, getting him out of the way.

Hinata made her way over to where Sasuke and Naruto were, "Damn it." she heard Naruto curse, "What are we supposed to do?" Naruto spun around to look at Gaara, however, the jinchuuriki of the Ichibi was doing nothing but clutching his head, similar to what he did at the beginning of the fight with Sasuke.

Suddenly, life returned to Gaara's eyes as he started at Naruto and Hinata, "**What's wrong? Weren't you going to retreat? What are these two to you?**"

"Sasuke-kun… Naruto… Hinata…" Sakura mumbled while she was unconscious.

"They're my friends! Leave them alone, or I'll kick your ass!" Naruto yelled at Gaara.

Sakura released a bloodcurdling scream as the sand around her tightened.

"**Now what? Weren't you going to kick my ass?**" Gaara asked.

"Damn you!" Naruto shouted as he launched himself at Gaara, only to be casually swatted away by Gaara's tail.

Naruto cursed as he landed on a branch a few feet away, _It's going to take most of my chakra, but I gotta summon Gamabunta_. Naruto reasoned. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto yelled as he slammed his palm to the ground. Naruto blinked as he beheld what he summoned, a small toad.

"What the? It's just a kid. Bring some snacks if you want me to play with you." the small frog said as he looked up at Naruto.

"Well, guess what? I hate you stupid frogs all together!" Naruto yelled.

"What's that? I'm a toad not a lowly frog!" the toad yelled back. Hinata just stared at the pair, how could they be having a childish argument at a time like this?

"Whatever, I don't have the time to play around with you, lil' warty face." Naruto said as he turned his attention back to Gaara.

"Friends? You guys make me sick, I fight only for myself!" Gaara yelled as he transformed more, now both of his arms and his entire face looked like a demon's.

Gaara rushed at Naruto. Naruto quickly braced himself for an attack that never came. Horrified, Naruto turned to watch helplessly as Gaara pinned Hinata to a tree just as he had to Sakura, then did the same to Sasuke.

"**They won't be released unless you beat me. Not only that, but the sand will keep gripping tighter and tighter until it kills them all.**" Gaara informed Naruto of his plan. He then crossed his arms and flung them. "**Sand Shuriken!**" Gaara yelled as the projectiles hurtled towards Naruto and the small toad.

Quickly reacting to the threat, Naruto picked up the toad to protect him and tried to roll with the attack. Naruto, however, was knocked into a tree from the force of the attack

"Man, you're weak." The toad said crawling out from under Naruto's arm.

"Shut up, you. Damn it, why did I summon you instead of the boss?" Naruto replied.

"But, what is that guy." the toad asked.

Naruto remembered his own painful past at that point. The stares, the hate were still fresh. However, he was saved from that fate by those who had come to acknowledge him. For them, he would fight, he would win, but could he defeat this foe?

"**What's wrong, are you afraid of me?**" Gaara taunted, "**To fight for yourself, or to fight for others. Just love yourself, and fight only for yourself. These are the definitions of the strongest. Fight me, Uzumaki! Show me those powers you used to defeat the Hyuga! I will crush those powers! Come on, I'll kill them all if you don't!**"

"Damn you." Naruto yelled as he made the sign for his signature jutsu, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

"**Fuuton: Great Breakthrough Jutsu!**" Gaara shouted as he blasted the clones with a extremely strong burst of wind. Gaara stalked the real Naruto, "**I won't kill you now. I'm going to play with you, see when you'll finally ditch your friends to save your own ass. Of course, I won't let you get away.**"

Naruto couldn't do anything as Gaara proceeded to royally kick his ass. Naruto was trying to make out what he was feeling, there was something building up inside him. Something dying to get out.

"What is this feeling? For some reason, to him, to anyone but him. I don't want to lose, even if I die." Naruto said as he stood up from the ass kicking.

Naruto looked around at his fallen friends as he wrapped an exploding note around a kunai.

"**What's wrong? You came chasing me all the way here, and this is all you can do?**" Gaara taunted again.

Naruto again used the Shadow Clone Jutsu. "Alright, here I come. I got some things to show you! Naruto Uzumaki: Clone Body Slam!" The clones used themselves to throw each other at Gaara at a heightened rate of speed. Gaara reached out with a sand arm to block the incoming speed.

"Alright do it now!" the real Naruto yelled as he was tossed by his clones towards Gaara. Gaara made to hit him, but Naruto used another clone to roll our of the way and drop behind Gaara, and then used yet another clone to give himself a launch pad to get behind Gaara.

"Eat this!" Naruto said as he shoved the kunai with the exploding note on it straight into the base of Gaara's tail. Naruto received a blow to the head for his troubles, but he smiled as he flew threw the air, "Boom."

The resulting explosion rocked the forest. Naruto had barely enough presence of mind to keep himself from slamming unprotected into the tree he landed on. He looked up to see that half of Gaara's demon body was gone, but Naruto couldn't tell if he done any damage to the real Gaara.

"**Oh well, I'm just going to end it here.**" Gaara said as a smirk returned to his face.

"Naruto…" Sasuke said, "Get out of here… save yourself… "

"No! Because he's the same as me, he lived with the same pain and loneliness. I thought he was strong because he survived in that solitude and fought only for himself. But I was wrong, his strength isn't real. Strength doesn't come from fighting alone, true strength comes from fighting to protect those precious to you, isn't that right Haku?" Naruto replied as he steeled himself for the battle ahead. Naruto let out a scream as he began to conjure up the fox's chakra. "I will protect them all, no matter what!"

"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto yelled as hundreds of clones littered the forest, "Sorry to have kept you waiting, Gaara. Now let's see what you got. Let's go!" Naruto yelled as all of his clones jumped into the air and unleashed an unholy rain of shuriken onto Gaara. Gaara blocked the incoming shuriken as best he could only to leave himself open to below.

"U!" one clone yelled has he kicked Gaara under the chin.

"Zu!" another clone as he did the same.

"Ma!" a third clone yelled as he landed his own kick.

"Ki!" the fourth clone shouted as he also landed his kick.

Then Naruto and all of the rest of his clones unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks upon Gaara, "Naruto Nisen Rendan!"

Gaara plummeted to the ground. He didn't have time to regroup as all the clones began to descend, "I'm not done yet, this time I'll hit you with a Yonsen Rendan!"

"**There's no way I can lose!**" Gaara yelled as he released the full transformation of Shukaku.

All of Naruto's clones were destroyed in the sudden explosion of power. Naruto just looked on at the new form of Gaara in stunned disbelief. _Is this the monster inside of him, it's huge!_

Naruto couldn't too anything as sand began to wrap around his body. As he realized what was happening, Naruto reached out for more of Kyuubi's chakra. He began to make the signs for the Kuchiyose no Jutsu.

"**I can't believe I had to resort to this form. Desert Burial!**" Gaara announced as the sand began to crush Naruto.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto yelled from inside the Sand Coffin, suddenly the sand couldn't contain what was inside it, and out exploded Naruto riding on top of the one and only Gamabunta.

"**You again!" **Gamabunta said, annoyed at being summoned again, "**What'cha want now?**"

"Gamabunta-sama, I need your help. I need to defeat him, boss." Naruto said as he pointed over to Gaara.

"**Nope!**" Gamabunta replied flatly.

"But, why?! You said you'd make me your underling when we first met. It's the Boss's job to help out his underlings, isn't it?!" Naruto yelled.

"**Yeah, I said I'd make you my underling, kid. But I haven't exchanged my sakazuki with you yet.**" Gamabunta said.

"But I'm not able to drink yet!" Naruto shouted in response.

"Now, don't be sayin' that and listen to this fella. He saved me, pops." The small toad said as he leapt onto Naruto's head.

"Pops?" Naruto questioned.

"**Why are you here, Gamakichi?**" Gamabunta asked his son.

"I was bored, so I came out to play. Never mind that though, that guy tried to bully me." Gamakichi replied.

"**That's it, it's payback time you hoodlum.**" Gamabunta said as he unsheathed his tonto, which was as large as a small house. "**Hold on tight."**

Naruto did as he was told as Gamabunta charged at the transformed Gaara. Gamabunta's slash took out a good chunk of Gaara's sand body. Gamabunta, however, lost his grip on his weapon. It landed a good ways away, near the place where the battle started.

"Hey boss, try to lure him away from there, all my friends are trapped over there, and I don't want them to get hurt. We have to beat him, or we cant save them!" Naruto informed the toad boss.

"**You're fun, Naruto Uzumaki!**" Gamabunta responded as Naruto watched Gaara's true body rise up out of the sand demon body.

"**Thanks for keeping me entertained, but now I'll show you the true power of the Ichibi!**" Gaara said.

"**Look at him, he shows signs of insomnia. Look at the bags under his eyes. Those possessed by Shukaku, the Ichibi, cannot sleep.**" Gamabunta said.

"Why's that?" Naruto asked.

"**Because, if they sleep their personalities are eaten away by Shukaku, bit by bit until they disappear. Since the jinchuuriki suffers from a lack of sleep, they are often unstable. However, while the jinchuuriki is awake, the true powers of Shukaku remain suppressed.**" Gamabunta replied.

"So if the jinchuuriki falls asleep willingly…" Naruto pieced the puzzle together.

"**Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu!"** Gaara said as his body fell limp.

"**AHAHAHAHA! I'm free! And look, someone I want to kill right off the bat.**" Shukaku yelled. "**Fuuton: Air Bullets!**"

"**Hold on! We're gonna jump!**" Gamabunta informed Naruto as he left the ground to dodge the incoming air missile. Shukaku shot more of the air bullets at the toad boss while he was in the air.

"**Suiton: Water Bullets!**" Gamabunta shouted as he fired balls of water at the balls of air. The two attacks collided with each other and dispersed, causing an artificial rain that lasted for a few moments.

"How do we stop him?" Naruto asked as Gamabunta landed.

"**You're gonna have to wake up that kid on Shukaku's head.**" Gamabunta informed him, "**We're going to get close, and I'll need you to transform me into something that has fangs and claws so I can hold on to the Ichibi. Then you can jump off and attack the kid.**"

"Okay." Naruto said. He quickly tried to rack his brain for something with fangs and claws. _Fangs and claws, fangs and claws, fangs and claws…._

"**Now kid!**" Gamabunta yelled as he rushed the tanuki demon.

"Transformation Jutsu!" Naruto yelled.

Gamabunta emerged from the smoke of the transformation as something that had claws and fangs. He had emerged as the spitting image of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. Shukaku let out a howl of pain as Gamabunta's newfound claws and fangs dug into his body.

"**Do it now!**" Gamabunta yelled.

Naruto was more than happy to oblige. He launched himself off the toad boss's head and landed a stiff punch right to the jaw of the sleeping Gaara. While the blow was enough to wake Gaara and end Shukaku's reign, it didn't incapacitate the Suna genin. Naruto again made another charge at the now awake Gaara. However, the "ground" underneath Naruto gave way and he began to sink into Gaara's demon body. Gamabunta managed to protect Naruto from attack from the sand with his tongue, but Naruto was still sinking.

"You're going to be killed by me." Gaara's voice had returned to normal, "My existence will continue."

_Damn it, I have to save them. _Naruto thought, _Give me some more, you damn fox. Just a little, enough to take him out._ Naruto was slightly surprised when the fox agreed and seeped out a little more chakra to Naruto.

Feeling reenergized, Naruto freed himself from the quicksand. "Here I come you damn bastard!" Naruto yelled as he ran full speed at Gaara.

"Die!" Gaara yelled as he began to ensnare Naruto in more sand. Somewhere along the line, Naruto's headband fell off, but he didn't care. He had to rescue his teammates. But he was caught up in the sand only inches from Gaara's face. He couldn't free his hands or feet.

"You bastard!" Naruto yelled as he lashed out with the only thing he could, his head. The crack as Naruto's head made contact with Gaara's was sickening. Gaara's eyes rolled back up into his head and the sand body began to crumble as he briefly lost consciousness. Naruto could barely keep his eyes open as he and Gaara plummeted to the ground. However, both ninja managed to recover before reaching the ground. Both were on one knee, panting hard, but staring daggers at each other. Gamabunta and Gamakichi were both gone, having ran out of their own chakra.

"After all of this, I feel so empty and tired. You do too, right?" Naruto said. "I finally reached my limit with that final blow. You and I are the same, let's make this the end of it."

Mirroring each others movements, Naruto and Gaara leapt up through the trees and into the air, each aiming one final punch at the other, in hopes of ending this fight with a victory. The two ninjas met, Naruto dodged Gaara's punch, and yet again planted his head into Gaara's. Both Gaara and Naruto crashed to the ground, exhausted.

-----------------------

Obito watched as the barrier jutsu around the building faded and five figures made their retreat.

"Should we follow?" Guy asked.

"No, we don't have enough information, and could walk into a trap." Kakashi said.

Obito looked and the two ninjas standing before them. He knew one was Kabuto, a traitor. Obito had caught Kabuto about to kidnap or kill Sasuke in the hospital.

"Besides, we shouldn't lose sight of our current enemy." Obito said, "Right, Kabuto?"

Kabuto slowly removed the mask he had stolen from a dead ANBU before entering the arena.

"What do we do?" Baki asked.

"Retreat." Kabuto answered simply.

"Oh, you're gonna run away from us?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh, yes, otherwise Obito-kun there would simply copy all of my abilities, and that wouldn't do." Kabuto replied, "So, until next time…" Baki and Kabuto then disappeared in a smoke bomb.

----------------

Sasuke managed to get his body to move as he felt the sand retreat, he rushed over to catch both Sakura and Hinata before they fell to the ground unprotected and hurt themselves.

"Damn it…" Sasuke cursed himself for not having the strength to save his teammates, his friends. "Good job, Naruto." Sasuke then passed out from exhaustion.

----------------

Naruto had began dragging himself over to Gaara. His arms and legs weren't responding, so he was using his chin. He didn't know if the others had been freed yet, but he was going to make sure, even if he had to kill Gaara.

"My existence won't be put out. It won't! Stay away from me!" Gaara yelled at Naruto, pure terror evident in his eyes.

"Being alone, being incomplete." Naruto said sadly, "What you must feel, your pain, I can understand that. But, for the people that are precious to me, to be able to protect them. If you are hurting them, if you are trying to kill them, I will stop you. I will kill you."

"All this time, you've fought for the others?" Gaara asked.

"They rescued me from the hell of being alone. They acknowledged my existence. That's why they are worth fighting for." Naruto replied.

"Love… that's why you're so strong." Gaara said, "You're friends are safe, I have ran out of chakra, they should be releases now. I'm sorry."

"Thanks." Naruto said, his body relaxing, "All you ever needed was a friend, Gaara. Someone to acknowledge you. Well, how about I be your first? We share so much, Gaara, let me show you the way I've lived."

"I… yes, I would like that." Gaara said.

"Good, now I'm going to sleep." Naruto said as he let the tiredness take him, he was happy.

Gaara simply stared at the boy unable to move. Temari finally appeared from the trees.

"Gaara are you okay? I think we should leave." Temari said.

"I am fine, Temari." Gaara said, "No, we can't. We caused this, we should stay to face the consequences. Besides, we cannot leave Kankuro here alone. Please do me a favor."

Temari was shocked, she had never seen her brother like this before. "What is it, Gaara?"

"Please, go and find his friends and make sure they are okay. I'd… hate it if my friend's friends were hurt because of me." Gaara said.

Temari was floored, he just referred to this blond haired kid as a friend, "Sure, Gaara. Be right back."

"Thank you, oneesan." Gaara said.

Would the surprises never end? Temari heard three things she never thought she would hear. Gaara caring for others, having a friend, and calling her sister. It was too much. However, she did as her brother asked and retrieved Sasuke, Sakura and Hinata, all of whom were unconscious. Temari tended to their wounds, then fell asleep herself, it had been a long day.

That was how the ANBU found them, four Konoha genin and two Suna genin all incapacitated laying around each other in a rough circle. It had been a long day for everyone, and these kids hadn't even learned the worst of it yet.

--------------------------------

A/N

Q&A time again kiddies:

"Please do explain how Kakashi has the Sharingan even though Obito still has both eyes AND is still alive."

Okay, I never said Kakashi had the Sharingan. I you're assuming he does, because he was going to use Chidori, then you're mistaken. Remember, Kakashi didn't have the Sharingan when he made the Chidori, it's just required to perfect the technique, something Sasuke is going to have to do. Kakashi, still lost his left eye however, and doesn't have a replacement for it. The reason he used Chidori against Orochimaru was simply out of desperation.

"BTW You referred to Jiraiya as a sennin, not the Yonnin like he should be, just to let you know, it's in the first scene he's actually training Naruto in, though otherwise I haven't been able to catch any AU mistakes other than that…"

I think you're a little rusty on your Japanese here. Sannin is the Three Ninja, in this fic they are renamed the Yonnin, the Four Ninjas (another OC will be coming to fill out the hole, if anyone is wondering). However, the word sennin means sage or wise man. So, Jiraiya is still a Toad sennin, or ero-sennin. He's still a sage. I hope this clears things up for you.

As always, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I hope to have another one written soon. Remember, constructive criticism is always appreciated.


	9. Chapter 9 Discovery of an Angel

Four Man Squads

Chapter 9 - Time to Grieve, a New Mission, and the Discovery of an Angel

Two days had passed since the Suna-Oto Invasion. Suna had issued an official apology to Konoha, and had stated that they had been duped from the get go. The Yondaime Kazekage had been assassinated well before the Chunin Exams had even began. Apparently, Orochimaru killed the Kazekage and took his place to initiate this invasion.

While the reparations paid from Suna to Konoha were massive, no amount of money or promises of helping to rebuild could truly replace what was lost that day. Twenty-three of Konoha's finest had lost their lives in defense that day, including one Hiruzen Sarutobi, better known to Konoha as the Sandaime Hokage. Today was the remembrance ceremony for those ninjas. All of Konoha stopped as everyone, civilians and ninjas, donned their best blacks and went to pay their respects to their beloved Hokage and the others who had given their lives in defense of the village

The clouds seemed to mimic the feelings of the people of Konoha, it was raining. It was as if the skies themselves wept over the lose of the one known as "The Professor." Naruto was at the ceremony being held for the Hokage and the rest of the ninjas lost that day. It was taking every fiber of Naruto's being to keep from crying his eyes out for the old man. Beside him to his right stood Hinata Hyuga, tears flowing freely down her face. She knew she would get in trouble with her father for showing this weakness, but she didn't care. Going on down do Hinata's right was Sakura Haruno, who, like Hinata, was also freely letting her tears mingle with the rain, she was never really close to any of the ninjas who had died, but everyone had felt close to the Hokage. To Sakura's right was Sasuke Uchiha. Sasuke's mask was an emotionless mask. Sasuke had already lost so much in his life, that death no longer seemed to affect him as it did the others.

Naruto looked down to his left to see Konohamaru, tears forming small rivers flowing down his cheeks. Naruto knew it had to have been harder for Konohamaru than anyone else there, Sandaime had been the kids grandfather, and Naruto knew just how much the kid cared for his grandfather. Naruto watched as Iruka laid a hand on Konohamaru's shoulder, trying to provide some comfort for the boy. Naruto watched as Konohamaru turned into Iruka and his embrace.

Naruto stared up at the Hokage Monument. He took in the faces of the Sandaime and Yondaime, both great men who had given their lives for this village. They were men that Naruto respected greatly, and also the standard that Naruto strived to achieve and surpass.

"Iruka-sensei," Naruto asked, "What are we? Is life just this simple?"

Iruka seemed to understand Naruto's cryptic question, "When a person dies, they lose everything, past, present, and future. He died fighting in a mission. Death caught him unaware, because life is just that simple. It's like a dream, it's all the same, whether or not you reach your goals, but everyone knows it's important to die for a cause. Family, friends, lovers, and everyone else, to me, those are the most important people. We trust each other, help each other from the day we're born to the day we die. We start to feel that love is the most important thing. Those relationships take time to develop. Anyone who wears a Konoha headband knows that it's the most important thing."

"Yeah, I know that as well." Naruto said as his gaze turned back up to the monument, "But, death is still so painful."

Obito spoke up from behind his genin squad, "Sandaime wouldn't think that it was painful. He believed that people should not be hurt without a reason, but it's no use even if you understand."

"Right," Naruto replied, "But not knowing is better than knowing."

-------------------------

A few hours after the end of remembrance ceremony, Jiraiya was lounging on top of Ninja Ops, actually right outside the window of the Hokage's private office. He had out a telescope and was taking in the "sights" of a nearby bathhouse.

"I see you haven't given up on the foolish things…" An old man said from behind Jiraiya.

"Homura-sama and Koharu-sama, what business do the late Hokage's advisors have with me?" Jiraiya asked as he turned around to see who interrupted his "research". Homura, the old man, and Koharu, an elderly kunoichi, were former teammates of the Sandaime, and were almost as respected as the late Hokage.

"We have something of great importance to speak to you about." Homura said in response.

"So you say. The talks with Suna has been going well, right? The final terms of the reparation will be concluded soon?" Jiraiya asked.

"The situation with Suna is not important at the moment. The more pressing matter is that the power of Konoha is decreasing, and some people are starting to get scared. Our number one priority is to make preparations for any possible crisis that may arise." Homura answered.

"Because we do not know if other hidden villages will take advantage of our situation, we have had to summon several of our best military minds and formed a committee on how to best approach the situation. Working with the Village Council, we have reached a conclusion on the best way to continue." Koharu spoke up, "Firstly, We decided that we need a strong leader to be the Godaime Hokage. Orochimaru isn't the only problem for Konoha right now, and we need a strong foundation to build on. Jiraiya, we have decided that you should be the Godaime Hokage."

Jiraiya lifted up a hand in refusal, "Unluckily for you, I'm not the type, nor am I interested in assuming the title of Hokage."

Homura spoke up again, "We have decided on you. You are one of the legendary Yonnin, if you are not the type for then tell us who is."

"There's two others I can think of fit for the job. Kiyoshi Washi or Tsunade Senju would be much more suited for the job than I." Jiraiya answered.

"While true," Koharu retorted, "we don't know the whereabouts of either of them."

"I'm going to go look for them, shouldn't be a problem right?" Jiraiya answered.

"However…" Homura replied.

"Don't worry about it. I'll bring back either the Eagle King or the Slug Princess to be your next Hokage." Jiraiya interrupted him.

"I understand, but you need to take a squad of ANBU with you to aid in your retrieval." Homura stated.

"I'm not going to run away," Jiraiya answered, "It's a little excessive to have someone watch over me. However, this is one guy I'd like to accompany me. I've found an interesting new egg."

----------------------

Obito landed next to Jiraiya as the two advisors left. Jiraiya had pulled back out his telescope to resume his perverted pleasures.

"I assume that new egg is Naruto?" Obito said.

"Of course, the brat is very interesting." Jiraiya answered as he continued to watch the bathing beauties.

"I have a request to make of you." Obito said as he watched an eagle circle overhead.

"And what's that, Obito?" Jiraiya said.

"I'd like you to take another of my students with you, Jiraiya-sama." Obito stated simply.

"Sasuke? Sorry, but I don't really like that kid." Jiraiya replied.

"No, Hinata. Her home life is shit, but ever since getting on Team 7 she's shown a lot of improvement, not only in her ninja skills but in other things as well." Obito said.

"This has what to do with me, exactly?" Jiraiya inquired.

Obito smiled, "It has nothing to do with you, but everything to do with Naruto. You see, after watching them, I've noticed that he seems to be an inspiration for her, and she tries harder and learns more when he's around. In short, He is good for her."

"And you're worried that if I take that pillar away for a undetermined amount of time that she will relapse and lose everything she's gained." Jiraiya answered.

"I doubt she'd lose everything, but it would be a major setback." Obito answered truthfully. He took another look at the circling eagle, "That, and I have a feeling that something very beneficial will happen for her should she accompany you."

Jiraiya sighed, "I guess I can do this favor for you, but you owe me one."

"Thanks, Jiraiya. It means a lot to me." Obito replied. _Hinata Hyuga heir to the title of Eagle King, or in her case Eagle Queen. Some reason I just can't shake that feeling. I just wonder if she can get past Kiyoshi's hatred of the Hyuga clan…_ Obito thought as he left Jiraiya to his peeping, the eagle still circling overhead.

-------------------------

"Why do we have to go, Ero-sennin? I was wanting to get that Kakashi to teach me the Chidori." Naruto complained. Jiraiya had just informed Naruto and Hinata that they were to accompany him on the trip to find Tsunade and Kiyoshi.

"Well, I was wanting you to come with me, so I could help you with your training. I could teach you something just as cool, if not cooler than the Chidori." Jiraiya replied, "But, I guess I can always take Sasuke with me."

"Wait, no. Don't do that! I'll go get my stuff. Don't leave without me, Pervy Sage!" Naruto yelled as he made a beeline for his apartment at top speed.

"H-he's really excited." Hinata said.

Jiraiya looked down at the Hyuga heiress, "Yeah, he's easily excited, isn't he? One word about learning something better than what Sasuke has, and he's off running. I think I could get the boy to jump off a cliff if I told him he'd be stronger than Sasuke when he hit the bottom. Anyway, what about you? You sure you want to go?"

"Y-yes. I-I think it'll be n-nice to get away for a while." Hinata answered.

"Oh, and I'm sure you won't mind being pretty much alone with Naruto either, eh?" Jiraiya added. Hinata just turned a very deep shade of crimson in response to his question.

"I-I-I, um…. I need to go pack my things as well." Hinata said suddenly as she left to go to her house. She also had to inform her father of her new mission, and that she wouldn't be home for a while.

----------------

A couple of hours later Jiraiya, Naruto, and Hinata were all prepared to leave Konoha on their mission to find the two other members of the Yonnin. They would have departed earlier, but Naruto had to return to his apartment and rethink what he was going to take on the trip, the first time he showed up with almost of his possessions stuffed into his pack, earning a laugh from Jiraiya and a giggle from Hinata.

"Alright! Let's go!" Naruto yelled has he pumped his fist in the air and took of at a run.

Jiraiya looked at the form of the boy speeding away from him, "Is he always like this?"

"Yes." Hinata replied happily, a smile on her face.

Jiraiya sighed, "This is going to be a long trip. I guess we should head on out."

Jiraiya and Hinata then left the gates of Konoha at a much more sensible pace, they were walking.

Naruto realized that he was leaving the others behind, "Hey! Hey! Let's go! We're on a mission right?!"

"Calm down, brat. We don't know where our targets are, or how long we might be on the road, so take it easy, okay, kid." Jiraiya said, "You might have stamina to spare, but Hinata and I don't, so we aren't going to push it. Besides, you're going to need your strength when I start to teach you that new jutsu."

Naruto put on his best pouting face, "Fine, whatever." Naruto fell back to rejoin the group.

The three of them walked on in relative silence for a couple of hours. Hinata enjoyed the sounds of nature coming from along the path. Birds were singing, and she could hear a nearby stream babble as they walked.

"So, Ero-sennin, what's this awesome jutsu you're going to teach us?" Naruto asked.

"I told you to quit calling me that. My name's Jiraiya. You'll find out later, I want to get to the next town before we start in on the training." Jiraiya answered.

"How long's that gonna take?" Naruto asked impatiently.

"Well, walking like we are, we'll be there early tomorrow afternoon. That means we are going to have to sleep on the road tonight. Better get used to it though, we'll probably be sleeping under the stars a lot as we hop around from town to town in our search." Jiraiya said.

"So we can start training tomorrow, after we get to the town?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"Yes, Naruto. Once we get settled into a room, I'll begin your training. Remember though, we are on the lookout for these two people." Jiraiya said as he flashed a pair of photographs of Tsunade and Kiyoshi to them. Naruto and Hinata took the time to memorize the faces.

"What are we finding these people for?" Naruto said.

"You know that the Hokage is the strongest ninja in the village, right?" Jiraiya asked.

"Of course, what's that got to do with it?" Naruto replied.

"Well these two belong to the same group that Orochimaru and myself do. We were called the Yonnin, we were the strongest ninja team ever seen in the history of Konoha." Jiraiya explained, "We even earned our own nicknames. Anyway, Konoha now needs a new Hokage, and I'm not really fit for the job, so we're searching for one of these two to take up the role of Godaime Hokage."

"Oh, okay. But, what were your nicknames, ero-sennin?" Naruto asked, his curiosity spiked.

"Well, Orochimaru," Jiraiya said the name with disgust, "was the Snake Lord, Tsunade-hime was known as the Slug Princess, Kiyoshi became the Eagle King, and I was known as the Toad Sage."

"That's really cool." Naruto said with wonder in his eyes, "Are you really that powerful?"

"Of course, brat." Jiraiya bragged, "There's no one in the elemental nations that could stand one on one in a fight with me, except for another of the Yonnin."

The day wore on with Naruto asking more questions about the Yonnin. Even though there was hatred evident every time either Naruto or Jiraiya spoke of the Snake Yonnin, Jiraiya happily relived his glory days as a member of the Yonnin. Soon night fell on the Land of Fire, and Jiraiya, Naruto, and Hinata made camp. They only had two tents, and Hinata, being the only girl, was lucky enough to get one to herself. Naruto had the regrettable task of bunking with Jiraiya, and his legendary snoring problem.

-------------------------

Naruto awoke in the middle of the night. He barely had managed to go to sleep with Jiraiya's incessant snoring, but that wasn't what had woken him up. No, the truth was, Naruto really, really had to pee.

Slapping on the black and blue jumpsuit he had wore for the day, Naruto made his way out into the forest to relieve himself. He made sure to be extra quiet as to not disturb Hinata's sleep.

After relieving himself in the forest, Naruto had refastened the zipper on his pants, when something caught his ear.

"_Hey, Dad, look at me__  
Think back and talk to me  
__Did I grow up according to plan?__  
And do you think I'm wasting my time  
__Doing things I want to do?__  
But it hurts when you disapproved all along  
And now I try hard to make it  
I just want to make you proud  
I'm never going to be good enough for you  
Can't pretend that I'm alright  
And you can't change me"_

Naruto couldn't believe the sound he was hearing. It was like an angel had descended to sing to the forest, but the song was so sad. What reason did a angel have to be that sad? Naruto decided to try and find whoever it was that was singing so beautifully.

"_Cause we lost it all  
Nothing lasts forever  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect  
Now it's just too late  
And we can't go back  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect"_

Naruto was making his way slowly and silently through the forest. He realized he was getting closer to the creek.

"_I try not to think  
About the pain I feel inside  
Did you know you used to be my hero?  
All the days you spent with me  
Now seem so far away  
And it feels like you don't care anymore  
And now I try hard to make it  
I just want to make you proud  
I'm never going to be good enough for you  
I can't stand another fight  
And nothing's alright"_

Naruto had finally made his way to the clearing. He saw his angel, a girl, sitting near the edge of the creek. Naruto tried his best to keep quiet and not startle the angel. He took in her features. Short, black-blue hair, with two long bangs framing her face, and two pale…lavender eyes. His angel was none other than Hinata Hyuga.

"_Cause we lost it all  
And nothing lasts forever  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect  
Now it's just too late  
And we can't go back  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect_

_Nothing's going to change the things that you said  
And nothing's going to make this right again  
Please don't turn your back  
I can't believe it's so hard to talk to you  
But you don't understand"_

Naruto looked closer at his teammate, only to see tears of sadness roll down her cheeks. Naruto couldn't help himself, he began to cry with her.

"_Cause we lost it all  
And nothing lasts forever  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect  
Now it's just too late  
And we can't go back  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect_

_Cause we lost it all  
And nothing lasts forever  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect  
Now it's just too late  
And we can't go back  
I'm sorry I can't be perfect."_

Naruto watched through teary eyes as, though her song was over, Hinata simply sat curled up into a ball, knees tucked into her chest, crying deeply.

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto said as he made his presence known. He didn't really know what he was doing, but he just couldn't leave her alone like this.

"Na-Naruto-kun?" Hinata jumped up to her feet and tried to dry her tears, trying to make herself presentable for her teammate, "What are you doing here?"

Naruto answered truthfully, tears still in his eyes, "I was using the bathroom, when I heard you singing. I thought it was an angel." Hinata blushed at the angel comment, but Naruto continued, "I decided to see what it was only to see you here singing… and crying. Hinata…"

"I-I'm okay, Naruto-kun. D-don't worry about it." Hinata tried to play it off.

"No, you're not okay, Hinata. I heard everything, the song was so sad, and so personal. It was obviously about your dad. What's wrong?" Naruto asked.

"I-It's nothing, really. I-I just…" Hinata started looking at the ground, but was suddenly stopped when she felt something squeeze her gently. Hinata looked up into the bright blue eyes of Naruto.

"Hinata, please, I know I'm not the person to talk to about families, but you're a friend, and I want to help you with any problems you may have. Even if all I can do is listen, I want to be there." Naruto said, still blinking away tears.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun…" Hinata said as Naruto sat alongside her nest to the creek. Hinata proceeded to tell him all about her problems at home. From the brutal training sessions, to the way that Hiashi treats her like she doesn't exist, and how she had to deal with it all by herself since she was so shy, she never made friends during the academy.

"I'm sorry, Hinata. I should have done something." Naruto said, one armed wrapped around the Hyuga as she was crying softly into his shoulder.

"No, it's not your fault, Naruto-kun. I never tried to make friends with anyone, I was too shy." Hinata said.

"No, I saw you Hinata. All that time, I saw, and I never did anything. I was so used to everyone look at me with pure hatred in their eyes, because of the Kyuubi, but I noticed how you'd look at me. Your eyes never held that hatred, they were always filled with something else. I wanted to talk to you, but I was scared. I liked that look, and I was afraid that if I opened my mouth, I'd say something that I couldn't take back, and you'd hate me like everyone else. So I just sat there, letting you look at me, never trying to know you, because of my own fear. I don't know what it was that filled your eyes, but it was so much better than hate, I couldn't stand it if you didn't look at me that way." Naruto explained, "What was it Hinata? What is it you see when you look at me?"

"N-Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered as she looked into his eyes, "L-love… I-I-I l-love you, Naruto-kun."

Naruto was floored. He did not know love. He knew happiness, and friendship, but love was something that was never his, "I'm sorry Hinata-chan, but I don't know anything about love… I've never had it, I don't even know what it's like…"

Hinata watched as Naruto's eyes teared up again, _Of course, he never knew his family. He never had anyone to show him love._ "Naruto-kun…" Hinata said, "I-I c-could show you…"

Naruto looked down into Hinata's pale lavender eyes, those all-seeing eyes, and saw the same things he always had, "I'd like that Hinata, maybe… maybe… I might love you too."

----------------------

Hinata awoke that morning fairly confused. She wasn't in her tent, and she was laying on something warm. It took her a second to remember exactly what happened. She looked over to realize that she was sleeping on Naruto's shoulder.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered. She then remembered what happened after she had confessed her love to him and promised to help him find out what love was. They didn't say anything else for the rest of the night, he had just held her while she let her emotions run their course. She was happy that he seemed to accept her, but the sadness that she had brought up with the song hadn't completely left her. She realized she must have fell asleep on him.

"Hinata-hime…" Naruto mumbled as he adjusted his sleeping position and continued snoozing. _Did he just say Hinata-hime?_ Hinata thought. She giggled a little at that nickname, _I think I could get used to that one._

However nice it was to just lay there feeling his warmth, Hinata knew they needed to get up and back to camp before Jiraiya woke up. So, she got up and dusted off her clothes, then turned her attention to Naruto. She began to shake him softly, "Naruto-kun… get up. We should probably head back to camp before Jiraiya-sama gets worried."

"Huh… Hinata-chan?" Naruto said has he began to wake from his slumber, "You feeling better now?"

"Yes, I am, Naruto-kun. But, we need to head back to camp before Jiraiya-sama gets worried." Hinata answered.

"Yeah, yeah… You fell asleep on me last night." Naruto said as he got up himself.

"I'm sorry. I guess I was tired from … well, from everything." Hinata answered truthfully.

"No problem." Naruto said with a grin, "I, uh, actually kinda enjoyed it."

Hinata's only response was to blush. Soon, though, Naruto and Hinata made their way back to the camp, hand-in-hand.

"So, where do we go from here?" Naruto asked as he and Hinata trekked through the forest.

"W-what do you mean, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"Well, you said you were going to show me love… what exactly would that mean?" Naruto asked.

"Umm…. I-I think that, maybe…" Hinata couldn't get the words out. She wanted to say they should date, but her shyness was getting in the way again.

"Maybe we should start dating? I know that we've been out together a few times, but those times were as friends and teammates. I guess we can go as… a couple." Naruto tried the last word out. He had to admit he liked the idea of him and Hinata being a "couple".

Hinata was relieved that he came to the same conclusion, "I-I would like that, Naruto-kun."

"Well, I guess I should make it official." Naruto said as he turned around suddenly and picked up both of her hands in his, "Hinata Hyuga, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Y-yes, Naruto, I'd be happy too." Hinata answered happily, and she let out a small surprised squeal as Naruto pulled her into an embrace, which she quickly returned.

--------------------------

The rest of the trip to the nearest town was uneventful. Naruto and Hinata had returned to the camp before Jiraiya had woken up, and changed into new sets of clothes. Hinata ended up making breakfast, since the only coking experience Naruto ever had was heating up water to make instant ramen.

After eating and packing back up their tents and anything else they had unpacked, Jiraiya, Naruto, and Hinata hit the road again. Jiraiya, however, couldn't help but notice the change in behavior in his two young charges. Especially since they were making no efforts to hide it, and were walking down the road hand-in-hand.

"So, what happened between you two last night?" Jiraiya asked. Hinata immediately turned a nice shade of red at the question, "You two weren't this close yesterday."

"Well, umm… Hinata and I are kinda dating now, Ero-sennin." Naruto replied.

"Oh ho, really now. I guess that explains why you weren't in the tent last night." Jiraiya stated.

"You know I left and didn't go to check on me? You're supposed to be looking out for us!" Naruto yelled.

"I could still feel both of you nearby, so I figured you were just taking a piss. Anyway, what happened last night?" Jiraiya asked as he whipped out a pen and pad, hoping to get inspiration for his next edition of the Icha Icha series.

Naruto looked over to Hinata, who gently shook her head, letting Naruto know what she thought. "No, it doesn't concern you. It's a private thing." Naruto answered.

"Aww… come on, you can tell Uncle Jiraiya." Jiraiya pleaded.

"NO!" Naruto shouted as he stormed off ahead, Hinata in tow.

Jiraiya chuckled as he followed the new couple on into town.

-------------------

Soon after entering the new town, Jiraiya had found a hotel to stay in for the next couple of days while they gathered information on Tsunade and Kiyoshi. However, soon after checking in, Jiraiya spotted a very attractive female who was obviously flirting with him. He immediately dumped his pack into Naruto's arms, and gave the room key to Hinata.

"Go up to the room and work on your chakra control… I'll be back later." Jiraiya said as he took off after the young woman.

Naruto sighed, "He's off chasing women again…"

"D-does he do that often?" Hinata asked, she didn't know much about the Toad Sage.

"All the time, he's a major pervert. He constantly peeks into women's bathhouses and does other things like that." Naruto answered simply, "Oh well, what do you say we go get some lunch after we throw our stuff up into the room? I'm kinda hungry."

"I'd love to, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered. They quickly made their way up to their room, dropped off the packs and immediately turned around to go see what the town had to offer.

However, they never got back down the hallway before they were confronted by two men in black coats with red clouds patterned on them.

"Could this really be the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi?" the larger man said. Naruto realized that he had some creepy fish-like features, blue-tinted skin and what looked like gills under his eyeballs. _How do they know about the Kyuubi, this isn't good…_ Naruto thought, as he instinctively took a position in front of Hinata, intending to protect her.

"Naruto-kun, we would like you to come with us." the shorter man said. Naruto looked over to him, and was shocked by what he saw. The man had the Sharingan, like Sasuke.

"Itachi, we don't need him running around. Maybe I should cut off a leg…" the fish-man spoke again.

"It's been a while Sasuke…" Itachi said his eyes still on Naruto. Naruto looked around the two men to see Sasuke standing at the other end of the hall.

"Itachi Uchiha…" Sasuke said as he stared daggers at Itachi.

"Today's a special day, the second time I've seen another Sharingan." the blue man said as he looked into Sasuke's eyes.

"…I will kill you!" Sasuke shouted as he burned through some handsigns. Naruto watched as lightning began to cackle from Sasuke's palm, "I've lived hating you, only to kill you. I have lived for this! Chidori!"

Sasuke charged at Itachi, dragging the Chidori across the wall, destroying a good chunk of it as he went. As he began to lunge at Itachi, Itachi made the smallest of moves, grabbing Sasuke at the wrist and diverting the Chidori into the wall, giving Naruto and Hinata's room a nice new wide door.

_This is bad, I got to do something. _Naruto thought. He made the Ram sign and began to charge up his chakra

"Bastard…" Sasuke shouted at Itachi.

"You're in the way…" Itachi said as he torqued Sasuke's wrist, resulting in a sickening crack as it broke. Sasuke let out a scream of pain as he dropped to his knees.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted as he made the signs, "Kuchiyose no…"

"Too late kid." the fish-man said as he slashed at the air around Naruto.

_I can't feel any chakra…_ Naruto thought. "What did you do?" Naruto asked in a mild panic.

"My Samehada eats chakra, now that your chakra is gone, should I chop off an arm or a leg?" Kisame asked as he began to swing his sword at Naruto. However, Samehada never found its target as a human-sized toad popped into existence and blocked the incoming blow with its forearm guards.

"You two don't know too much about me." The familiar sound of Jiraiya's voice came from down the hall, "I'm better at getting the girls than they are at getting me. Although it doesn't look like it, it's my specialty. I, Jiraiya of the Yonnin, will not fall for any woman's wiles. When you're someone like me, you only have to flash your sexiness to have women to fall at your feet." Naruto looked down the hall to see Jiraiya standing there with the woman from earlier slumped unconscious on his shoulder.

Naruto pointed at his sensei, "That girl just winked at you and you were off scampering after her. Stop trying to act all cool, Ero-sennin!"

"I told you to quit calling me that!" Jiraiya shouted as he put the young girl down.

"Screw that! We need to be worrying about these guys." Naruto yelled back.

"So it's one of the legendary Yonnin, Jiraiya," the fish-man flashed a shark like grin, "You like beautiful women, but we didn't think such a simple ploy would stall you for long, anyway."

"It seems you've already undone the genjutsu on the woman." Itachi stated simply.

"You used the Sharingan to put a genjutsu on the woman so she could draw me away. Not a very manly way to do things." Jiraiya said, "So it's true, you are after Naruto."

"No wonder Kakashi and Obito knew about this. You were the source of information." Itachi replied, indifferent, "'To abduct Naruto' those were the orders given to us by the leaders of our organization, 'Akatsuki.'"

"You won't get Naruto." Jiraiya said as though he were stating a fact.

"Why is that?" Itachi asked.

"Because, I will kill you both, right here, right now." Jiraiya said, a deadly calm in his voice.

"Don't do it!" Sasuke yelled. He was standing up, cradling his broken wrist, "This guy is mine!"

Itachi looked at Sasuke through the corner of his eye, "I have no interest in you right now."

"Don't interfere! This fight is mine!" Sasuke yelled. However, his bravado was useless, with a single punch, Itachi doubled Sasuke over. After that, Itachi kneed Sasuke right under the jaw, and then punched Sasuke into a wall, causing blood to spout from Sasuke's mouth.

"No mercy at all." the blue fish man commented.

Naruto watched as Sasuke slumped to the ground, only to be picked up again by the neck. The it seemed that all that happened was Itachi stared into Sasuke's eyes before Sasuke let out a bloodcurdling scream of anguish.

"Itachi, I advise against you using your eye so many times in one day." the fish-man said.

"Assholes!" Naruto yelled as he began to run at Itachi. Jiraiya began to weave through handsigns.

"Kuchiyose: Toad Mouth Trap!" Jiraiya yelled as the walls, floor, and ceiling became flesh. "Too bad, Itachi, Kisame. You're already inside my stomach."

Naruto stumbled as the floor shifted below him. Hinata promptly fell down from the sudden shift in the flooring. They could both see that the wall was absorbing Sasuke, and that Itachi was whispering something to Sasuke.

"I've summoned the esophagus of the giant toad of Myobokuzan's Rock Inn. I hope you guys enjoy becoming food for the great Iwagama." Jiraiya boasted.

"What's going on?" Naruto said trying to regain his footing.

"Naruto, just stay still. You too Hinata, it's my jutsu." Jiraiya instructed.

"Kisame, come." Itachi ordered.

"Shit…" Kisame said as he picked up his sword and hightailed it back to Itachi.

"No one can sneak away from here with me being aware of it. You can't escape." Jiraiya told the retreating ninja.

Suddenly, Jiraiya took off following the two shinobi after they had turned a corner. Naruto took off after Jiraiya.

"Why's this happening? What's going on?" Naruto asked as he got near. He then turned the corner and saw a hole in the wall surrounded by what looked like black flames, "They're gone!"

Naruto moved closer to the black fires, "What's with this fire? It's black."

"Don't stupidly move closer to the fire." Jiraiya told Naruto. After studying the flame for a moment, Jiraiya rolled out a scroll with some markings on it, "All right."

Right then, Hinata walked around the corner and saw the black flames for herself. "W-what is that?" she asked, while keeping her distance. Naruto began to walk back over to his new girlfriend.

"Fuka Hoin!" Jiraiya announced as the black fire was sucked into the scroll and sealed away, "I don't know what this fire is, but I intend to study it. Anyway, is everyone alright?" Jiraiya slammed his foot on the ground, and the hotel began to return to normal.

A look of panic came over Naruto's face, "Sasuke!" Naruto rushed to catch his friend as he slumped to the ground, eyes staring at nothing. Jiraiya cam over to inspect the damage himself when a kunai flew from out of nowhere and imbedded itself in the wall. Turning his head to where the kunai came from, all Naruto could see was a big blur of green.

"Dynamic Entry!"

--------------------------

Hiashi Hyuga felt something he hadn't felt in a long time… lost. Ever since he had heard that his eldest daughter had passed into the final rounds of the Chuunin Exams, but the prodigy of the Hyuuga clan, Neji, had not, he had been reevaluating how he had treated Hinata. Therefore, for the month of training between the second and third exams, Hiashi had his daughter followed. Honestly, he had never really cared about what she did or who she did it with, so the only thing he knew about her team was that they were instructed by Obito Uchiha.

To say that Hiashi was shocked at the reports that the branch family members had brought back would be an understatement. She was training with Naruto Uzumaki most days, the boy that had defeated Neji, and according to the reports she won a fair amount of the spars that they had. Of course, a spar is very different from an actual battle, but there was that and the report that she had created and entirely new jutsu based on the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms. Hiashi would have to test this Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms. However, the report of her training with Naruto had opened up old wounds.

Hiashi was one of the few people who knew of Naruto's true heritage as the son of Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage and a close personal friend to Hiashi. These reports had made Hiashi take a trip down memory lane. Remembering the time he spent as a member of Team Jiraiya and how close he had became with Konoha's Yellow Flash. Hiashi remembered their first missions, pulling weeds, cleaning houses, and babysitting. Hiashi had always hated them, thinking that such missions were below him as an honorable son of the Hyuga clan, but Minato had quickly put him in his place. Even though the Namikaze clan was never a very large one, they were one of the few that were as respected as, if not more so than, the Hyuga clan, but Minato never complained. Minato had always valued friendship, teamwork, and family over all things, and he seemed to know that they needed those crappy missions to gain that teamwork.

Hiashi had dug out the old team photo they had taken decades ago. Minato and Hiashi stood side-by-side each of them doing their best goofy, crazy smile. It had been one of the few times Hiashi had ever really cut loose and just be. As the heir to the Hyuga clan, he always had to be perfect, or at least try to be. He had to be the best at everything. However, with Minato, he never had to be anything.

After the loss of Minato, and the loss of his wife, Hikari, Hiashi changed. But only now did Hiashi realize this. He became cold, and cared only for the wellbeing of his clan. He had lost sight of his family, and something that shamed him even more was that he had forgotten a promise he had made.

The night of the Kyuubi attack, Minato had told Hiashi of his plan to seal the beast into his own son, and that the jutsu to do so would probably kill him. Minato had made Hiashi promise, that, if anything should happen to Kushina, Hiashi would provide a home to Naruto. Oh, Hiashi had fulfilled the promise in words, he had paid for Naruto's apartment and food for the young Naruto after Kushina died in childbirth. However, after doing a lot of meditation and soul-searching over the past month, Hiashi had realized he had kept his promise only in words and not in spirit, he had never provided a "home" to Naruto, simply a place to live.

Hiashi now had a lot on his plate, over a decade of mistakes to fix. There were several people, he realized, that had deserved more from them than they had gotten. Hinata and Naruto were probably the ones he had wronged the most. Then there was Neji, Hanabi, and Obito, who hadn't even done anything wrong.

"Isao!" Hiashi announced the name as a command.

"Yes, Hiashi-sama." A young Hyuga branch member kneeled before him.

"I need you to do something for me." Hiashi stated.

"What is it, sir?" Isao answered.

"I need you to tell Neji to meet me immediately, and contact Obito Uchiha and inform him that I wish to speak with him tomorrow, at his convenience" Hiashi relayed his command.

"At once, Hiashi-sama." Isao replied at left the room.

Hiashi took another look at his old team photo again. This was probably going to be the hardest thing Hiashi ever had to do, but it had to be done. He couldn't stand the thought of Minato looking at him from the afterlife, wondering what had happened to his old friend, that Hiashi had betrayed his trust.

---------------------------

Jiraiya was rubbing his nose from after getting a foot directly implanted into his face. Meanwhile, Might Guy was quickly offering apologies for kicking the Toad Sage in the face.

"I'm sorry for the attack, Jiraiya-sama. I was using my forehead protector as a mirror, so I couldn't see clearly." Guy apologized.

"So, you didn't hit me on purpose. I guess it's okay then. Anyway, we need to get Sasuke to the hospital. He had a broken wrist, a fractured rib, and Itachi attacked his mind with some jutsu using the Sharingan." Jiraiya stated.

"Ero-sennin, is Sasuke going to be okay?" Naruto asked. Hinata stood behind him, eyes showing concern for the young Uchiha.

"He took a tolerable amount of mental damage. He should be okay after a long stint in a hospital." Jiraiya answered.

"Damn it. What did that guy do to Sasuke?" Naruto said to no one in particular as his whole body began to tremble with rage, "What do you say, Ero-sennin? How about a change in plans? Not to long ago, this wouldn't have mattered, but now… It's time to track down those 'Akatsuki' bastards."

"Hmph, you go after those guys now and you'll just get killed." Jiraiya said in denial to the request, "Those guys are on a whole other level. They came because of you…"

"I won't run away! I can't just keep running and hiding…" Naruto shouted.

"Shut up for a minute and listen!" Jiraiya yelled over Naruto, "You are weak. You're feelings are understandable, but you'd only be running to your own death." Jiraiya then turned to Guy, "Still, we must get Sasuke back to Konoha quickly."

"I can do that, but you should know that both Kakashi and Obito were probably hit with the same jutsu.

"Obito-sensei…" Hinata murmured, concern lacing her voice.

"Kakashi is bed-ridden, almost in a coma. Obito fared better. Apparently, his Sharingan protected him somehow, he's out of it for the day, but the doctors say he should be back to normal in a couple of days. We need someone with immense medical knowledge." Guy informed them.

"So we definitely need to retrieve Tsunade now." Jiraiya said.

"You mean, THE Tsunade?" Guy asked in surprise.

"Yeah, she should be able to help out Sasuke and Kakashi." Jiraiya said.

A few moments later, Jiraiya, Naruto, Hinata, and Guy were standing outside the hotel. Guy had Sasuke on his back, ready to return to Konoha carrying him.

"Please find Tsunade-sama, and bring her back to us." Guy said before they parted ways.

"Don't worry. We'll find her. Take care of Sasuke, thick brows." Naruto said, voice full of confidence.

"Naruto, you got guts. I like kids like you, with you flames of youth burning so bright. I'm going to give this to you. You too, Hinata. This is the reason why Lee is so strong…" Guy said as he dug around in his vest.

"What is it? What?" Naruto said, now like a kid in a candy store. Naruto would do almost anything to be stronger.

"This!" Guy exclaimed as he whipped out a pair of green spandex bodysuits, "It's the ultimate, stream-lined, form-fitting, easily-accessible, perfectly-made bodysuit. Wear it while training and you'll 'know' the difference! You'll never look back! My Lee wears it twenty-four seven. It is my most-beloved piece of ninja must-have."

"Cool!" Naruto shouted happily as he snatched up his jumpsuit.

Not one to be rude, Hinata graciously accepted her "gift", "Thank you, Guy-sensei."

"If you can carry those around, why not carry a mirror? Sheesh…" Jiraiya complained.

Soon, Guy was on his way back to Konoha, waving bye to the others.

"Kid, you're not really planning on wearing that are you?" Jiraiya asked.

"It fits me doesn't it?" Naruto questioned back.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata replied.

"What? He said it's make me stronger, so I'm going to wear it." Naruto said.

"NO!" Both Jiraiya and Hinata yelled at the same time. Jiraiya immediately snatched up the green spandex. Hinata turned a deep shade of crimson, embarrassed over her outburst.

"Geez… fine." Naruto acquiesced. "I won't wear the thing."

"Good. Now I'm going to gather some information on where Tsunade is. She's now our number one priority." Jiraiya said as he left to head out into town.

"Well…" Naruto said as Jiraiya left, "We have a date to get back to, don't we?"

"H-hai, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered, in fact with everything that had just happened, she had almost forgot about their idea for a spontaneous lunch date.

Naruto quickly walked over and grabbed Hinata's hand, "Come on, with all the action going on, I'm starved." Quickly, Naruto and Hinata made their own way into town, looking for a suitable place to grab a bite."

-------------------------

Neji quickly made his ways through the halls of the Main Branch manor. He stopped to knock on the door to the study of the one man he probably despised the most in the world.

"Come in, Neji." Hiashi called through the door.

"You wished to see me Hiashi-sama." Neji asked in a neutral voice, trying to show as much respect he could for the head of his clan.

"Yes, I have much to discuss with you." Hiashi said as he fiddled with an envelope in his lap, "Please sit down."

Neji complied with the request and kneeled onto a pillow in front of his uncle.

"I need to tell you the truth of that day, Neji." Hiashi said. Neji immediately knew what day he was referring to, the day in which his father was forced to take Hiashi's place in death.

"What truth?" Neji asked.

"I… fully intended to die that day." Hiashi said, a look of regret on his face and in his eyes. Neji couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"What are you talking about? My father was killed to take your place!" Neji shouted, all pretenses of respect gone.

"The results may appear that way, but that is not the truth." Hiashi said.

Neji was still rooted in disbelief, "Why now, after all these years?"

"I thought you might actually believe me now. You see, I was informed of Kumo's demands after I killed that intruder. They wanted my life in return for the loss of their man, but of course they only wanted the secrets of the Byakugan. However, to keep Konoha from war, I was willing to die and let Kumo have my body. That's when one of the elders informed me that we should use Hizashi as a body double, since we were identical twins. They told me your father had already agreed to the plan, but I wouldn't hear of it. I argued with the elders and your father to keep him from doing this. Suddenly, your father struck me down with a Jyuuken strike. I asked him why, when he had you, that he was sacrificing himself for the main family. He told me simply that he hated the main family, but he wasn't doing it for the family, he was doing it for me, as a brother. He said it was the first time he had the freedom to choose. He told me to tell you, that he wasn't choosing death to protect the family, but protect me, you, and the entire village." Hiashi told his story.

"Why should I believe this?! Seems like a pretty convenient excuse created by the main family!" Neji shouted.

"I know, that's why I'm giving you this too." Hiashi said as he handed over the envelope to Neji.

Neji scanned over the letter, it was from his father, or supposedly from his father. It definitely looked like his handwriting at least. The letter detailed a lot of what Hiashi already told them, included with an apology from Hizashi for only showing Neji his hatred of the main family. Neji was breaking down, if this was a hoax, it was a very elaborate one. When Neji looked up, Hiashi wasn't sitting at his desk anymore. Hiashi had moved to kneel at the floor, bowing, head touching the floor, in front of Neji.

"Please, believe me." Hiashi begged as he maintained his position.

"Please, raise your head…" Neji said as tears began to stream down his face, "…uncle."

-------------------------

"Ero-sennin?" Naruto asked. He, Jiraiya, and Hinata were back on the road after spending the night in the town they had just left. Jiraiya had heard rumors of Tsunade being spotted a few towns over.

"What is it, kid?" Jiraiya answered.

"What are those guys after me for? Are they after the Kyuubi?" Naruto asked.

Jiraiya looked between Naruto and Hinata, slightly panic-stricken.

Hinata, quickly picking up on Jiraiya's nervousness, answered the question he hadn't asked, "I-I already know about the fox."

Jiraiya let out a breath of relief, realizing he wasn't going to have to explain what Naruto was talking about, "Yes, Naruto. The Akatsuki do seem to be after the Kyuubi."

"What exactly is this thing anyway. I know it's the monster that attacked Konoha twelve years ago, and that everyone's scared of it. But, why do those guys want it." Naruto said as he gripped his stomach. Hinata cam over and laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"The Kyuubi is indeed a monster. It appears age after age, a demon hell bent on destruction. It was one of the disasters that the people of old would fear. As for why Akatsuki desires the Kyuubi, I honestly have no idea. I assume that they want to try and harness its powers for some reason or another." Jiraiya answered, "Those guys will keep trying to get you, it's a destiny you'll have to live with. But when they come again, I'll be here to protect ya, so…"

Naruto interrupted Jiraiya, "That is why I have to become stronger. So I can protect everyone, instead of being protected. So, let's go find this Tsunade so she can go back and heal Sasuke and the others, and then get on to training."

"Yeah, kid, let's go." Jiraiya smirked, "Anyway, I think it's time to start your instruction on that new technique I promised you. Since we don't have a lot of time, I'm going to be running you two through the ringer."

"M-me?" Hinata stammered, she knew Naruto was here for training as well as helping find the next Hokage, but she thought she was just there for her eyes to help with the latter.

"Well, it'd be a waste if you just sat there doing nothing. That, and if you two are dating, then he'll show it to you eventually anyway, so I might as well teach you too." Jiraiya reasoned, as he dug through his pack and dug out three water balloons. He tossed one to Naruto and one to Hinata as he kept one for himself. "Now watch carefully." Jiraiya said.

Hinata quickly activated her Byakugan, so she would know exactly what was happening. She watched as Jiraiya poured chakra into the water balloon, making currents that appeared random. The balloon stretched and retracted in odd ways, until finally it popped.

"Wow!" Naruto shouted.

"This is the beginning of the technique I'll be teaching you, "It takes three stages to learn, this is the first. When you're able to pop the balloon with only your chakra by spinning the water inside the balloon we'll go on to the next stage."

"Alright!" Naruto yelled as he immediately immersed himself into the ball while walking alongside Jiraiya. He was shocked when a few moments later he heard a pop and water splashing from behind him. Naruto turned around to see Hinata, her hand wet and covered in balloon pieces.

Jiraiya was flabbergasted, it had took him weeks to get past the first stage, the girl had just done it in a few minutes. "How'd you do that so fast?"

"W-well, y-you said to look closely, so I, ummm…, used my Byakugan to see exactly what you were doing to the ball, after that, I just tried to copy what you did." Hinata answered with a blush on her face.

"I see, and since your family specializes in chakra based strikes, you can easily manipulate the flows and control of your chakra." Jiraiya stated as he filled in the blanks.

"You're awesome, Hinata!" Naruto shouted his compliment, "So what exactly do you do?"

"W-well… Y-you have to swirl the currents in different directions, and that makes the balloon break." Hinata informed him.

"Alright!" Naruto shouted as he turned his attention back to his balloon, trying desperately to get it to spin the way he was told to. He tried, but could only seem to get it to spin one way. "Damn it."

"D-don't worry, Naruto-kun. I'm sure you'll get it." Hinata reassured him, "I-I could only do it because I've had a lot of experience with chakra manipulation because of my family's fighting style."

"Thanks, Hinata." Naruto smiled at her, "I'm sure I'll get it too."

Hinata returned his smile as they kept walking down to the next town.

------------------------

After a few hours of walking, Naruto was finally starting to get the hang of the spinning thing, even though he still couldn't quite do it. He was getting small ripples and such, but he couldn't really keep multiple streams up for long before everything settled back into it's usual form. He was getting slightly depressed, but he kept on trying. Naruto looked up the road to see a man approaching them, he wore red pants, what appeared to be a red undershirt, and a white overcoat. He had a great mane of red hair, to rival that of Jiraiya's, pulled back into a ponytail, and he had red eyes. The man apparently had an affinity for the color red, because he wore forearm guards that were also red. He stood slightly shorter than Jiraiya.

"Well, well Jiraiya, nice to see you again after all these years. I see you took on some more apprentices." the man said cordially.

"Kiyoshi?" Jiraiya asked.

"Well, of course, don't you recognize me?" Kiyoshi taunted as he came closer, "I could recognize your hair from a mile away."

"I see you've changed your color again." Jiraiya said.

"Yeah, I kinda like this red get up." Kiyoshi answered. His jovial look turned sour, however as he approached the group. "I see you have some, baggage."

"Kiyoshi, listen, this isn't what it looks like." Jiraiya stated.

Kiyoshi was staring daggers, lightning, and any other sharp or painful instrument you could think of at the young Hyuga heiress, "After all that's happened, Jiraiya, I can't believe you'd take one of those prideful, arrogant, main branch asses as an apprentice."

"Kiyoshi…" Jiraiya started, but never got to finish.

"You listen here, asshole, I don't know what your problem is with the Hyugas, but I'm going to kick your ass if you insult my girlfriend again!" Naruto shouted at Kiyoshi.

"You little runt! You don't know the first thing about…" Kiyoshi started to yell as he took in the young genin's features. "Jiraiya, is this…"

"Yes, Kiyoshi, that's Naruto Uzumaki, the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune." Jiraiya said, hoping Kiyoshi got the hint not to drop Minato's name into the conversation.

Kiyoshi quickly regathered his wits, "Well, you are keeping interesting company. But you still have yet to tell me why you're training on of them! Have you forgotten what happened to Hizashi? It should have never happened."

Jiraiya never got a chance to answer, "H-how do you know my uncle?" Hinata spoke up for the first time.

"How do I know him? I was his goddamn teacher that's how." Kiyoshi replied, "Uncle, you say, judging from your age, you must be Hinata, the eldest daughter of that bastard Hiashi."

"Kiyoshi, shut up." Jiraiya said.

"Like hell, I know the argument, Jiraiya, that Hizashi chose his fate. But, he did it to escape from that damned Caged Bird Seal." Kiyoshi practically spat the words out. "It should never have happened, he should have been free, damn it."

"I-I know, it's exactly how I feel about Neji-niisan." Hinata said, more or less to herself.

"What did you say?" Kiyoshi asked.

"She said that she felt the same way." Naruto filled Kiyoshi in, "I do too, that thing is horrible. I promised Neji at the preliminaries that, when I become Hokage, I will change the Hyuuga, and Hinata agrees with me."

"Is this true, Hyuga?" Kiyoshi looked like he didn't believe what he was hearing.

"H-hai." Hinata said, "I-I might be troubled with the pressures of becoming a clan head, but I've watched Neji-niisan become nothing but a being of hatred, because of what happened to his father and the… the seal. I-it pains me to see my cousin seemingly hate everything and everyone around him. If I could free him of his seal and free him of his pain, I would. I-I'd do it for all the branch family members."

Kiyoshi looked down at the young Hyuga for a moment, determining whether she was lying or not, "It seems your telling the truth. So you have some compassion and honor, a rarity for you main family types. So, Jiraiya what are you doing out here with these chicks?"

"Actually, Kiyoshi, we were looking for you and Tsunade." Jiraiya answered.

"Oh, and why, exactly, are you looking for me?" Kiyoshi stated.

"Too make a long story short, Orochimaru attacked Konoha a few days ago, Sarutobi-sensei is dead. Konoha is weakened and in need of a new Hokage. We were searching for you two, in hopes one of you would be willing to take up the mantle." Jiraiya informed Kiyoshi.

"Damn that Orochimaru." Kiyashi cursed at the mention of his former teammate, but he became respectful once again, "I'm sorry, Jiraiya, but I'm not fit for the job. My hatred of the Hyuga clan would undermine anything I try to do. However…" Kiyoshi turned to look at Hinata, making the girl cringe slightly and hide behind Naruto, "I would like to accompany you, if you don't mind, and I'd like to hear more on the current state of the clan. I was thinking of heading back for Neji's sake since he's gotten to the age of being a ninja. Hinata, was it, how's your relationship with your cousin?"

Hinata looked up at the Eagle King, "W-well, honestly, not to well… at least, until recently. Ever since Naruto-kun beat him in the preliminaries of the Chuunin exams, he's became a lot nicer to everyone, except father. I-I can't really blame him, though, ever since I knew the reason why he was so angry."

Kiyoshi stoically listened to the explanation given to him by the shy Hyuga heiress. He had to admit, she was much different than any other main family member he had ever met. She could change the Hyuga for the better, but she seemed like she was the type that is easily pushed around. "We're going to have to do something about your confidence, Hinata."

"Huh?" was the reply from the girl.

"Well, you want to change the Hyuga, like Naruto, right?" Kiyoshi watched as Hinata quickly nodded her head, "I can tell just from the way you handle yourself, and your tendency to stutter that you are easily pushed around. I imagine you have self-esteem problems. I'd be willing to bet that your 'father' is a slave driver, always condescending, and acts like he doesn't give a damn about you as a person, am I correct?"

Hinata could do nothing but nod her head.

"I figured as much, ever since Yondaime died fighting the Kyuubi, Hiashi began to grow colder. I had heard about the death of Hikari after giving birth to another girl, I could imagine what happened after that." Kiyoshi said, "Anyway, if you are going to change the ways of the Hyuga, then that means fighting the council of elders, and most likely your father as well. Right now, I don't think you'd last two seconds, Hinata."

"Hey!" Naruto yelled, but was quickly silenced by a soft hand on his shoulder. Naruto turned around to see Hinata shaking her head at him.

"H-he's right about this, Naruto-kun." Hinata said, "I-I've been trying to change myself. T-to gain the strength to stand against the clan and show them the better way. But, even I know that what Kiyoshi-sama is saying is true. W-what do you have in mind, Kiyoshi-sama?"

"I'm offering you a once-in-a-lifetime chance, Hinata. A chance to become the apprentice of the Eagle King. Also, I'd love it if the person who finally changed the Hyuga for the better was a student of mine. What do you say, Hinata Hyuga?" Kiyoshi offered.

Hinata looked at Naruto. Naruto nodded back to Hinata. She turned her gaze back to Kiyoshi. "I humbly accept, Kiyoshi-sensei." Hinata said with a bow.

"Then best be prepared, Hinata. This will not be easy." Kiyoshi stated, "But, for now, we should go, you have a Slug Princess to find, correct?"

Jiraiya spoke up, "Yes, thanks, Kiyoshi."

"No problem, it seems a reunion of sorts is in order. Not exactly how I planned on my day going, but the next few years should be interesting." Kiyoshi said as the four of them traveled on down the road, onwards to their next destination. Naruto focused on trying to pop that damn balloon.

-----------------------------------

A/N

I do not own the song used in this chapter, it's "Perfect" by Simple Plan.

I know at least one of you has been clamoring for the NaruHina action *looks at Rose Tiger* I hope this sates your hunger for now. I really do hope you like the night forest/creek scene, I was rather pleased with it when I wrote it, so I hope you all like it as well.

Also, to address a question that might come up because of that scene and the one immediately following it, Naruto and Hinata did not do anything naughty during the night. I realized that the way I had left it open that it might be interpreted that they could have done something inappropriate. I assure you that is not the case.

That brings up another question I have for those of you following this story. What do you all think on lemons? I personally don't mind them as long as they reside inside the story and the story doesn't revolve around them. Now, mind you, this wouldn't come into play, until far into the future, but I'm on the fence about maybe having lemons in the story. This, of course, means that the rating would jump from T to M, which might happen anyway as battles get more deadly and gruesome. Again, this isn't planned to happen anytime soon, but I'd like your input on the matter.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please review.


	10. Chapter 10 The Search Continues

Four Man Squads

Chapter 10 - The Search Continues

Obito felt like warmed over shit. Soon after Naruto, Jiraiya, and Hinata had left to retrieve either Kiyoshi or Tsunade to become the Godaime Hokage, Obito and Kakashi had spotted two mysterious visitors in a restaurant. Those two men had turned out to be S-class missing nins, Kisame Hoshigaki and Itachi Uchiha, the man responsible for the deaths of the whole Uchiha clan. The only one Itachi had left alive was his younger brother, Sasuke, and the only reason Obito was alive was because he was out on a mission with Kakashi, Rin, and Guy.

Itachi's return brought up some bad blood in Obito. While he wasn't exactly respected within his own clan, he had friends, and he had family, but those were taken away form him by Itachi, the highly respected clan prodigy. Even though he didn't let it consume him like Sasuke did, Obito sorely desired own revenge against the man he once called family.

Even though Obito had Kakashi, Asuma, and Kurenai on his side, none of them were prepared for the weapon Itachi had at his disposal, the Mangekyo Sharingan. Luckily, Asuma and Kurenai managed to not get hit by the effects of Tsukiyomi, but he and Kakashi weren't as lucky. Kakashi was still in a coma, and the only reason that Obito was barely walking was because of his eyes and his blood. He didn't know why, but Itachi told him that Tsukiyomi didn't work as well on Uchihas with fully developed Sharingan. If it hadn't been for Guy jumping in, all of them would probably be dead.

Now, he was responding to a summons from that damned Hiashi. Truthfully, Obito wanted to go curl up into a ball in his bed and go to sleep for a few days, but something told him this was important. That, and he really didn't feel like pissing off the head of the Hyuga clan, it could come back to haunt his student, Hiashi's daughter.

Obito reached the Hyuga compound easily, and was quickly escorted into the main family manor by the branch family guards. Obito was lead to Hiashi's study, and was quite surprised he wasn't going to have to wait for Hiashi to meet him.

"Hello, Obito-san." Hiashi greeted as Obito walked through the door.

"Umm… Hello, Hiashi-sama." Obito replied, thrown slightly off by the man's cordiality.

"We have much to discuss, and I have much to answer for." Hiashi said as Obito took a seat.

"What do you mean?" Obito replied, thoroughly confused.

"I must apologize to you for my earlier actions. I insulted you and your family." Hiashi said simply.

"That's no big deal." Obito answered truthfully, Obito had never really cared about the pride of the damn Uchiha clan, "I was more upset with the things you said about Hinata at the time. Surely, you knew she was standing just outside the door when you said that."

Obito watched as Hiashi's face showed pain… and regret, "Yes, I was aware. There is no excuse for the way I have treated my eldest daughter. It's taken a lot of meditation and soul-searching for me to come to grips with what I have become. Ever since the loss of Minato, Kushina, and Hikari, I changed. As you know, your sensei and I were very close friends. When I lost him, I think I lost a piece of myself. When I lost Hikari due to complications in birthing Hanabi, I think I broke, and I became the cold an uncaring man you knew. I have many things to do, apologies to make, and burned bridges to try and repair. I will talk with Hinata when she returns from her mission with Jiraiya and Naruto. I asked you here, not only to apologize to you, but to discuss with you the future of both my daughter, and young Naruto."

"What has Naruto got to do with anything?" Obito asked. Obito was glad that Hiashi seemed to turn over a new leaf, but he was still cautious as this could just be some scheme. However, Obito could still remember the old Hiashi from before the death of the Yondaime, and he truly wished for that man back.

"Simply, I have failed him, and Minato, on multiple levels." Hiashi explained, "You see, the day of the Kyuubi attack, Minato made me promise to look after Naruto and provide him with a home should anything happen to Kushina. Again, as you know, Kushina fell ill shortly after the sealing of the fox and died a few days after. At the time, I was feeling pressure from the elder council for not yet having provided an heir to the clan. Hikari and I were wanting to wait until the time felt right to have a child, and with the constant pressures and stress being rained down upon me, I left Naruto in the care of an orphanage until I had dealt with the pressure of being a clan head. After the birth of Hinata, the council was still displeased since the heir was not male. I don't know if you know this, but the title of clan head goes to the eldest son of the current clan head, unless the current clan head has no son, then it goes to the eldest daughter. In the entire history of the Hyuga clan, only one woman has ever been the clan head. Continuing on, I checked in on Naruto regularly, and was appalled when I found out how they treated him when I wasn't around, so I bought the apartment he currently lives in and provided the toddler Naruto with food, clothes, and toys. He was alone, but I made sure a family member was always near for protection or any other reason. At this time I still intended to adopt Naruto as soon as I felt able, and then Hanabi came and Hikari died. Then, as I said, I changed, and I forgot all about my promise and about Naruto. While I had lived up to my promise in words and provided Naruto with a place to live, I haven't truly kept the promise made. I haven't given him a 'home', a place he can come and know he's cared for and welcome whenever he feels like it. Since you are his sensei, I was hoping to discuss with you about me adopting Naruto as a son and bringing him here to live in the Hyuuga compound."

Obito took a minute to process all the information he had just been given, "So, you are trying to fix your past mistakes. That, and you are trying to fulfill a promise to my old sensei. But, if you don't mind my asking, how would you adopting Naruto impact your clan? Also, why do you need to discuss any of this with me?"

"Adopting Naruto will have no impact on the clan. Since he is not of Hyuuga blood, he cannot take the title of clan head from me, and thus is not a threat to Hinata as heir. All that would really happen is he would be brought in, much to the chagrin of the council, and be treated as a main family member. I wish to discuss this with you, because, as his teacher, you're really the closest he has to a father figure. I also hope gain an understanding of the boy and Hinata. Shamefully, I have never really given her the time of day. Hikari is probably cursing me in the afterlife for treating our children the way I have." Hiashi explained.

"Well, I'll just say he'll liven this place up a bit. Naruto is nothing if not energetic. He's loud, brash, and likes to show off. He probably is the complete opposite of what goes on around here. Honestly, I think it would do the both of you a world of good if he stayed here." Obito replied.

"What do you mean?" Hiashi inquired.

"Naruto didn't only inherit his father's looks, but his innate ability to change others. Just like Minato, there's something about him that just makes people gravitate to him, and change them for the better. However, he gets most of the rest of his mannerisms from Kushina, right down to the incessant love of ramen. By the way, if you do really intend on adopting Naruto, I suggest stocking up on the ramen, he goes through it at alarming rates." Obito chuckled as he replied, "You'll help calm him down and show him how to think before he acts, and maybe he can thaw the ice that seems to reside on a lot of your people's hearts."

"I see…" Hiashi thought for a moment, "Yes, that would make me happy if he could do that for us. We've became so obsessed with our own pride and power, that we are losing sight of what is truly important. One more thing Obito, what can you tell me of Hinata and her relationship with Naruto? I have gotten reports that they train together nearly all the time, and that she has been improving in leaps and bounds since doing so, including developing her own jutsu."

"Yes, she has created a 'perfect defense' similar to the Kaiten. I only know the basics of it, but using her natural flexibility and chakra control, she emits short blades of chakra and blocks all incoming attacks in her line of sight. I've seen it only once, and I must admit it is impressive. Speaking in terms of Naruto and Hinata's relationship, they are simply close friends, though anyone with any sense can tell she wants it to be something more. That's another thing I should mention about Naruto, he can be very oblivious to the feelings of others. I can only blame it on the lack of human interaction he had as a child. They really are good for each other though, Hinata mellows Naruto out, and he acts as a buffer for her. She has a ton more confidence whenever he is around." Obito answered.

"Hmm…" Hiashi contemplated this new information, "Do you have any objections to my plans Obito?"

"No, Hiashi, I think it would be good for Naruto. Especially if you get him an inside look at the politics involved in your clan. His greatest wish is to one day become Hokage, and I believe he has the power to do it, all he needs is the knowledge. I believe that is something he can learn here. As long as your serious about changing yourself, I see no problems with this. In fact, I promise you the support of the Uchiha clan as its head." Obito answered.

"That would be much appreciated." Hiashi answered. However, inside, Hiashi was berating himself, he had forgotten that Obito was the Uchiha clan head until he decided to pass on the title to Sasuke, the rightful heir.

"However, I just want to make one thing clear, Hiashi. If this is all a ruse for one of your damned political games, and Naruto or Hinata gets hurt because of it, I will make sure you regret it, in one way or another." Obito warned.

"Warning accepted, Obito." Hiashi said. He was a little shocked to hear the threat in his own house, but he understood. Obito had come to care for his students as though they were all his own flesh and blood. Hiashi had to admit, it was more than he had ever done.

Obito and Hiashi exchanged pleasantries and Obito left the Hyuga compound. Obito immediately went home, got into bed, curled into a ball, and went to sleep.

* * *

Naruto's focus was solely on the water balloon in his right hand. Hinata had helped him understand the concept of what he was supposed to be doing, but he just couldn't make it happen. He couldn't sustain enough random flows of chakra out of just his one hand, the way Jiraiya did. Then, he had an idea.

"Hinata-chan, how did you hold the balloon when you popped it?" Naruto asked the heiress.

"I-I don't see how that matters, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered sheepishly.

"Just hear me out for a second, could you pop this one for me? There's something I want to see." Naruto requested as he handed the balloon out to Hinata.

"O-okay." Hinata said as she took the balloon and held it in front of her, both hands holding the balloon lightly at the bottom. Naruto watched as Hinata closed her eyes and focused her chakra, the balloons outer surface rippled violently and soon the balloon burst, leaving Hinata's arms wet.

"Thanks, Hinata!" Naruto shouted as he gave her a hug, not caring about her arms being soaked.

_What was that about? _Hinata thought to herself. Soon Naruto had grabbed another water balloon, but he held it differently than before, the balloon was held in his left hand as he poised his right as if he was going to strike the balloon. She watched as he concentrated on his chakra and began to strike out at the balloon with his right hand, but never actually touching the balloon. Soon he grabbed the ball with his right hand at the top and the surface began that familiar ripple, soon the balloon burst.

"C-congratulations, Naruto-kun." Hinata said, "I-I knew you could do it."

"Thanks to you, Hinata-chan." Naruto replied.

"I-I don't understand, Naruto-kun. How did I help you?" Hinata asked.

"Well, it had to do with the way you held the balloon." Naruto said, "You held it with both hands while Ero-sennin held it with only one. I know my chakra control is pretty bad, and that's what this is about. So, like you, I decided to use two hands, I make the primary rotation with my left hand then use my right to add all the other currents. That way I'm not doing everything with only one hand, so it compensates for my lack of control."

Hinata was ecstatic, even if she didn't show it well. She was always the one who needed help, but this time she was the one who had given up. She was happy for the change.

"Way to go, brat. Step one seems to be complete." Jiraiya said. He had seen the whole thing since he and Kiyoshi were behind their two young students, discussing current events in Konohagakure and other things.

"So when can we start the next part?" Naruto asked happily. Hinata was also wondering, she was pleased to be training in a jutsu side by side with Naruto.

"Take it easy, kid. We are pretty close to the next town, and Kiyoshi and I are going to be busy gathering information for a few days, at least, since this next town is much larger than the first one we stopped at. You two can take those days to relax, and maybe get to know each other a little better." Jiraiya said as he gave the two young ninja a sly smile as he said the last.

"Jiraiya, I will not have you perverting these chicks with your twisted ways." Kiyoshi said, "Especially since one is to be my student."

"Oh, come on, Kiyoshi. I'm just teasing them." Jiraiya replied.

For what it was worth, Naruto and Hinata just exchanged confused glances. Neither really had any idea what Jiraiya meant by "getting to know each other better." After that night in the forest and being teammates for a few months now, they should have known each other pretty well by now, right?

The next few hours passed by uneventfully. Naruto and Hinata continued to walk along the path ahead of their sensei, content to talk about what they thought the great Slug Princess would be like, worrying if Sasuke and Obito-sensei were okay, and what to do once they did get home, considering they were now officially dating. Jiraiya and Kiyoshi also talked between themselves.

"I'm going to take over Hinata's training after you show her the second stage of the Rasengan." Kiyoshi told Jiraiya soon after they had finished reliving their golden days.

"I figured you would. The second stage will be hard for her. While she has amazing chakra control and the Byakugan, the second stage is all about power. It could be a while until she's able to complete stage two. While power is something Naruto has in spades, Hinata still has a way to go to become lethal with anything but the Jyuuken." Jiraiya answered.

"That is true, but I still want her to do the second stage training, even if she never masters the Rasengan, it will be a good chakra building exercise for her. I plan on having her work on the second stage every day after I'm done training her." Kiyoshi informed Jiraiya of his plans.

"Fine by me. If you don't mind me asking, what are your plans for her?" Jiraiya inquired.

"I intend to wean her from her reliance on the Jyuuken, just like I did for Hizashi. It's one of the major flaws of the Hyuga, they seem to think that their fighting style is invincible, and that they shouldn't be learning anything other than the Jyuuken. This makes them extremely vulnerable to mid-to-long range types, as they never get close to use the Jyuuken. So, I'm going to be training her in long range attacks and jutsu." Kiyoshi answered.

"What about the eagle contract?" Jiraiya asked.

"I don't know, I didn't even let Hizashi sign it. I don't know for sure if I want her to sign the contract. What about the toads, have you allowed Naruto to sign the contract?" Kiyoshi replied.

"Yes, he can already summon Gamabunta if he calls on the Kyuubi's power." Jiraiya answered and watched as Kiyoshi's jaw dropped.

"He can access the fox's chakra?" Kiyoshi asked amazed.

"Only in small doses, but it's more than enough to summon Gamabunta. It'd also make for one hell of a Rasengan, I imagine." Jiraiya answered.

"That kid's something else. He has the potential to be the strongest the Hokage the village will ever see. The only thing he really lacks is the knowledge." Kiyoshi stated as he watched the back of Naruto.

"Yeah, he can be a dunce at times, but I have a feeling that he'll learn what he needs to be the Hokage." Jiraiya said.

After that, the two Yonnin's conversation changed again. They got reacquainted with each other, and figured out what the other had been up to for the last decade.

Another hour or so later, the group came across their next stop. Naruto had to admit the town was huge, it easily rivaled the size of Konoha. It was surrounded by cliffs, and the only way into the town was to take the various stairs or ramps down into the town.

"Wow!" Naruto shouted as he ran up to the fence surrounding the cliffs, "What's going on? It looks like a party is going on down there!"

Kiyoshi was the one who answered, "This area is famous for its apple orchards. The people who founded this town were all farmers who made fortunes off their apple farms. In fact, apples are still this town's number one source of income. So, in honor, they hold an Apple Festival every year before the time of harvest approaches. It's a week long festival, and it just so happens that we are here when they are having it."

"Should make gathering information easier." Jiraiya said.

"Yes." Kiyoshi agreed.

"Anyway, let's go get set up in a hotel and we'll go from there."

About 30 minutes later, Jiraiya, Kiyoshi, Hinata, and Naruto were standing in front of the hotel they were staying at.

"So what's the plan, Ero-sennin?" Naruto asked.

"Well, simple for today. Kiyoshi and I are going to ask around about Tsunade. You and Hinata are free to do whatever, I suggest you enjoy the festival." Jiraiya said.

"R-really? What about our training?" Hinata asked.

"Yes, consider it as a reward for completing the first step of your training." Kiyoshi said as he smiled down at his new apprentice, "Besides, even ninjas need to cut back and relax from time to time. So have fun, we'll start training again tomorrow."

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Naruto said enthusiastically as he took Hinata's hand, "Come on, Hinata. I bet there's all kinds of cool things to do."

"A-alright." Hinata said as she ran along with her boyfriend.

"Heh, kids." Jiraiya smiled.

"Did we use to be that innocent?" Kiyoshi asked.

"I guess." Jiraiya answered, "I'm just glad the kid has made friends. Maybe Hinata can show him something he's missed his entire life."

"I believe she can." Kiyoshi answered, "Even though I just met her, I can tell how much she cares for Minato's son."

"Yeah… Well, we should get on about 'gathering information.'" Jiraiya said with a smirk.

"You're not thinking what I think your thinking are you?" Kiyoshi asked.

"Well, what do you think I'm thinking, bird brain?" Jiraiya asked in reply, still smirking.

"Damn it, Jiraiya, I'm not letting you drag me to one of your damn brothels again, not after what happened last time!" Kiyoshi yelled.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata went from booth to booth trying everything. From squid cooked in something Hinata had never tasted before, to trying their hands at various festival games, Naruto and Hinata were having a blast. So far, Naruto had won her various plushies, a fox, an eagle, and a toad. Out of all of them, Hinata liked the fox the most, it reminded her of Naruto, it even had the same whiskers.

After they had tried out everything the booths had to offer, they went to a small amusement park that had been set up in what appeared to be the town's park. There was a Ferris Wheel, some more games, a machine Hinata had never seen before, and some other rides, like some giant swings and a fun house. Naruto took Hinata over to the large unknown machine.

"I wonder what this thing does?" Naruto asked as he looked at the large circular thing with interest. Hinata could see the words "Gravitron 5000" on the side of the machine, and a door that led inside.

"I-I don't know Naruto-kun." Hinata said as they watched several people walk into the machine. To Naruto and Hinata's shock the machine started to rotate, with the people still inside. They could hear screams of excitement and enjoyment coming from within.

"What do you think is going on in there?" Naruto asked again.

"Umm… I could find out." Hinata offered.

Naruto grinned at her, "I got a better idea, how about we try it?"

"Huh? I-I don't know Naruto.." Hinata said.

"Come on, Hinata. It couldn't be anything bad, those people are screaming in enjoyment, not pain. Besides, I'll be with you. I promise nothing will happen." Naruto pleaded.

"You promise?" Hinata asked.

Naruto nodded, "Promise."

"O-okay." Hinata allowed Naruto to take her to the line leading into the "Gravitron."

Luckily the lines weren't too long, and the couple didn't have to wait long before they were on the ride. Naruto and Hinata looked around on the inside, and saw what appeared to be cushions, on the wall. They watched as several people stood in front of the cushions. Naruto and Hinata mimicked what they saw and took up position against two cushions. Suddenly the room began to spin, and Hinata could feel herself being pressed against the wall. Though it was much heavier than usual, Hinata found Naruto's hand and grabbed it with hers. Naruto just gave her a smile as something entirely unexpected happened.

"EEK!" Hinata screamed as she was lifted, with her cushion, off of the ground and into the ceiling. As soon as she had launched, she came back down to the ground. She turned to look at Naruto who was shouting incoherently in joy as he too was lifted the small way into the ceiling. After the initial shock, Hinata too enjoyed the ride as she was lifted into the air, each time experiencing that peculiar feeling of weightlessness.

The ride, however, didn't last long, and Naruto and Hinata departed from the great Gravitron 5000.

"That was awesome! I felt like I was floating there a few times." Naruto shouted as he left the spinning room, surprisingly neither of them felt dizzy.

"Y-yes, it was quite fun." Hinata agreed.

"So what do you want to do now?" Naruto asked.

"Well, we could always try the funhouse." Hinata said.

"Alright." Naruto said, as he escorted Hinata over to the funhouse.

Hinata and Naruto both enjoyed themselves, making funny poses in the odd mirrors strewn about, and having a small war in a pool of balls. After leaving the funhouse, they noticed that the sun was starting to set.

"Well, it's starting to get late, what do you think, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked.

Hinata noticed that most of the people were starting to clear from the attractions and the booths, but where getting to places where they could clearly watch the sky, they were expecting something, "I-I think we should stay for a little while longer, everyone seems to be waiting for something."

Naruto took a look around, "You're right, is something going to be happening in the sky?"

"I don't know, Naruto-kun. It seems that way." Hinata answered.

Naruto and Hinata made their way up onto a rooftop, sharing it only with a slightly older couple, and patiently watched the sky. They were soon rewarded, as the sky immediately burst into wonderful shade of red, blue, green, purple, and a number of other colors. It was a fireworks display the likes of which they had never seen. Flowers made of color and light danced along the sky as night descended on the town. Naruto stole a glance at the couple that they shared the rooftop with, the both of them locked into a deep kiss. It gave Naruto an idea as he sat there with one arm wrapped around Hinata while she rested her head on his shoulder watching the beautiful display.

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked as he looked down at his lovely girlfriend.

Hinata started to turn her head, "Y-yes, Naru.." Hinata never got to finish as she was interrupted by a pair of warm lips touching hers. _Oh gods, he's kissing me…_

Hinata was sure she would have fainted at that moment, but she didn't. She simply wrapper her arms around Naruto, and enjoyed the kiss. It was her first, and she wasn't exactly sure on what to do, but it seemed to come naturally as she rubbed and massaged his lips with hers as he did the same. After a couple of minutes, they broke contact, and Hinata knew she had to have invented a new shade of red, she could feel the fire on her face.

"Hinata-chan, I'm sorry if…" Naruto said before Hinata shushed him with a finger on his lips.

"I-it's okay, Naruto-kun." Hinata said, "I, um…, enjoyed it. It's just that it was my first time, and you kind of surprised me…"

Naruto just smiled at her, one of those big, goofy grins he was known for, "Well, if you enjoyed it, and I know I enjoyed it, want to do it again?"

Hinata simply nodded, and then felt herself melt as he kissed her again. The fireworks were all but forgotten.

----------------

Early the next morning, Naruto, Hinata, Kiyoshi, and Jiraiya were standing out in the forest surrounding the town.

"Alright, both of you have completed step one, so it's time to start step two." Jiraiya said as he rummaged through the bag and pulled out three rubber balls. He tossed one to each Naruto and Hinata.

"Not this again." Naruto complained.

Jiraiya held up his ball. He quickly popped it with his chakra, "The first test was all about spin and control. This is all about power, the rubber ball is about one hundred times harder to pop than the water balloon was. The way to pop it is the same, it's just you have to make the air inside move much faster with much more power to pop the thick rubber."

Hinata and Naruto both looked down at their respective rubber balls. They both quickly assumed their respective stances for creating the chakra. Hinata supported the ball from underneath with both hands, while Naruto held his with his left hand and prepared to strike with his right. Both focused for a few moment, then Naruto lashed out at his ball. Naruto's ball squeaked and distorted like it was going to pop for a few seconds, but then settled back down to normal. Hinata's ball didn't change at all.

"Damn, it is a lot tougher." Naruto said as he stared at his ball.

"Well, you two have fun with it, we're going to see what we can find out about Tsunade." Kiyoshi said, "We'll bring you up some lunch and stuff later."

"Umm… Kiyoshi-sensei?" Hinata asked.

"Yes, Hinata." Kiyoshi answered.

"I-I, umm…, was wondering what you were going to teach me? Y-you really haven't said anything about what I'm supposed to be learning." Hinata inquired.

"Well, I wanted you to start the second step of the training for the Rasengan, because even if you don't manage to master it, the exercise is good for building your chakra reserves. So, for today, that's all you need to focus on. Tomorrow, I'll be starting your real training." Kiyoshi said.

"O-okay-sensei."

The both Yonnin left the two genin to their own devices to try and pop the rubber balls. For hours both young ninja attempted to pop the balls with no success. Soon, Hinata was laying on the ground, panting heavily, and on the verge of exhaustion. Naruto, having the nearly endless source of chakra known as the Kyuubi, was still going at it.

Naruto, however dropped the ball in frustration, "Ah, my hands and arms hurt so much."

"I know, mine do too." Hinata commiserated, "It's from constantly flooding the area with large amounts of chakra."

Naruto laid in the grass next to Hinata, staring up at the clouds. "I guess I should take a break too, it'd probably be easier without my arms hurting so much."

"Y-yeah." Hinata said as her hand found his.

"Kinda like that day before the final rounds. The day you finished that protection of the eight whatever." Naruto said.

"Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms." Hinata corrected him, "Yeah, we laid and watched the clouds for hours that day."

"I still don't see what Shikamaru gets out of it." Naruto said as he laid there. Hinata giggled, but Naruto continued on, "It feels good to just relax for right now, though. That ball is a lot tougher than I thought."

"Oh, you two taking a break already?" Jiraiya called out as he approached, both he and Kiyoshi were carrying bags. "We brought back some lunch."

Hinata and Naruto sat up, a rather painful experience for both, and gladly took their respective lunches from their sensei.

"S-so, did you find out any information about Tsunade-sama?" Hinata asked politely, in between bites.

"We heard reports that she had been in this town for a few days, but left around a week ago, but we haven't met anyone who knew her destination. We are going to stay in town for a few more days and see if we can find a lead on where she went." Kiyoshi explained, "How's the training going?"

"I-it doesn't seem like I'm getting anywhere…" Hinata said, "While Naruto-kun can at least make his ball distort slightly, I-I can't even do that."

"It's okay, Hinata." Jiraiya reassured her, "Your Jyuuken is a very powerful maneuver that requires very little chakra, so you've never had to really worry about your chakra reserves or making enormous amounts of chakra at one time. The Rasengan was created by the Yondaime, and it took him three years to master the maneuver. After that, he taught it to me, and it took me almost six months to finally get it to where I can use it in combat. So it's not something I was expecting either of you to learn overnight."

"Really? It took the Yondaime three years to develop this?" Naruto asked, his mouth still full of food, some of which was promptly sprayed on Jiraiya.

"Yes." Kiyoshi answered, "Even though I didn't learn the technique, I have seen it in use, and it is a most devastating attack. Hinata, I'm not going to force you to learn this if you don't feel up to it, but I do want you to continue this to increase your chakra reserves. While the jutsu and things I will be teaching you won't be nearly as intense as this is, they will still quickly drain your chakra if you don't work on improving your reserves."

"I'll continue with the training, Kiyoshi-sensei." Hinata said, "I-I actually do want to learn the Rasengan."

"Good." Kiyoshi replied, "I think you will learn the Rasengan eventually, but not as fast as Naruto probably will. From what I know of the training, Hinata, this will be the most difficult portion of it for you. What do you think, Jiraiya."

"Yes, seeing her superb control, I'll admit the first and third portions of the training will be easier than the second for her." Jiraiya answered. "Anyway, training discussions aside, you kids have fun last night? I know I did…"

"Jiraiya…" Kiyoshi warned.

"I know, I know. Don't pervert the students, yadda yadda yadda. You're no fun, Kiyoshi." Jiraiya shrugged off the warning.

"It was a blast!" Naruto shouted, "We went and played all kinds of games and tried all kinds of food that I'd never seen before. Then we went on that Gravitron thing, that was awesome, then the funhouse, and the fireworks…" Naruto then turned red, he had just remembered the fact that he and Hinata had spent at least thirty minutes on that rooftop kissing after the fireworks had been over. He looked over to Hinata, she had turned red as well, reliving the memory.

Their reactions didn't get by unnoticed by Jiraiya and Kiyoshi. "Oh, and just what happened after the fireworks, Naruto?" Jiraiya questioned, a gleam in his eye.

"None of your business, Ero-sennin." Naruto answered.

"You and Hinata did something didn't you?" Jiraiya asked, the deepening blushes of both young genin gave them away.

"Jiraiya, leave the kids alone." Kiyoshi said, "I'm sure they didn't do anything naughty. Or, at least, they better not have. It'd be a shame if we lost a lot of valuable time because they were injured."

"No, sir." Naruto assured Kiyoshi, "We didn't do anything bad, it was just a kiss."

"See, I told you Jiraiya." Kiyoshi said to his old friend.

"Whatever, none of you are any fun." Jiraiya said as he turned his attention back to his lunch.

----------------

The rest of the day came and went, and neither Naruto or Hinata made much more progress in popping the rubber ball. Kiyoshi and Jiraiya came back and returned to town with them to grab dinner and turn in for the night. However, instead of immediately going to bed, Naruto and Hinata both headed up to the roof of their hotel to watch the fireworks again. The festival still had two days until its conclusion, and there were fireworks every night, and supposedly the display on the final night was supposed to be better than all the other ones combined. Again, they sat under that illumination of the fire flowers.

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked.

Hinata turned her head to him, half-expecting him to jump in and kiss her like he did the last time he said her name as a question, "Yes, Naruto-kun?"

"I know you said you'd show me, but… What is love?" Naruto asked as he looked up at the brilliant lights in the sky.

Hinata found herself at a loss of words, how do you explain love? How do you explain any emotion, really? However, she tried her best, "It's really hard to explain, Naruto-kun. I really don't know what to say, it's something you just know when you feel it. It's something in your heart that jumps whenever you look at the person that you love, a feeling in your stomach that makes it seem like you can fly whenever your near that person. Knowing that you'll never be the same if anything happened to him, that you'd rather die than lose him. It's not the best explanation, but it's a complicated thing."

"Then how do you know you love me?" Naruto asked, eyes still skyward.

"Because, I feel all those things when I look at you Naruto-kun. I know in my heart of hearts, that you are the one for me, and that I would never be the same without you. You're my strength, my courage… my everything." Hinata admitted.

"Hinata-chan… I don't know what to say." Naruto said, finally turning to look at Hinata, "I feel a lot of those things you said. I'd rather die than see you in even an ounce of pain. Is that love? Caring about someone so much that you'd do anything for her? All through the academy I always asked Sakura out and tried to get her to like me, but she never paid any attention to me and would hit me more often than not. While I liked her, I wouldn't do absolutely anything for her. But, for you Hinata-hime, I'd do anything. I'd give up on being Hokage, I'd leave Konoha, hell, I'd even give up on ramen if it meant I could always have you with me. Hinata, I love you."

Hinata's eyes teared up, but these were not tears of sadness like so many of her tears were. This time, and for the first time in a long while for Hinata, she was loosing tears of joy, "I love you too, Naruto-kun." She said as she hugged him, not caring about the burning pain in her arms.

Naruto returned her embrace, placing kisses on top of her head as took in her scent. "I know, you've told me."

As much as the loved being in each others arms, Hinata and Naruto let go after a while simply because of the pain of having flooded their arms and hands with chakra for almost the whole day. The simply relaxed as they continued to watch the fireworks. Soon after the display was over, Naruto and Hinata quickly went to their separate rooms and went to sleep, both knew they were going to need their strength for the next day.

* * *

Hinata woke up early the next morning, and quickly showered and prepared for the day of training that awaited her. She didn't exactly know what Kiyoshi-sensei was going to teach her, but she was nervous and excited at the same time. She left her room at the same time Naruto did, he was clutching his rubber ball, already hard at work trying to finish the second stage of the Rasengan.

"Hello, Naruto-kun." Hinata greeted warmly.

"Uh?" Naruto snapped up, "Hi, Hinata-hime. Sorry about that, I was kinda lost in concentrating on… THIS DAMN RUBBER BALL!!" Naruto threw the ball randomly in frustration, which was a bad decision. The ball flew in almost a straight line hit the far wall bounced back and beaned Naruto right in the head. Luckily, since it was a rubber ball, it didn't hurt that much, "…damn it."

Hinata laughed at her love's antics, "It's okay Naruto-kun. You'll get it eventually, I'm sure."

"Yeah, I know, but man this is so frustrating." Naruto said as he bent down and picked up his rubber ball.

"So, I was just going to go get some breakfast, how about you?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah, I was too, Hinata-hime. Gonna need all the help I can get to defeat the rubber ball of doom." Naruto said as he walked alongside Hinata.

Hinata snaked her arm around his, "Naruto-kun, what's with the new nickname?"

"Well…" Naruto said with a grin as he rubbed the back of his head with free hand, "You are the heiress to the Hyuuga clan, so you essentially are a princess." Hinata slightly frowned at that explanation, even though Naruto couldn't see it, "But, more importantly, you're my princess, Hinata-hime, and for me, that's reason enough.

Hinata blushed a little at that, but she returned the compliment, "Yes, then I guess that makes you my knight in shining armor, hmm?"

"You think? I was thinking more like Prince Charming." Naruto teased with a grin.

Hinata didn't know what it was, but ever since that night in the forest, and with the events of the past couple of nights, she felt herself becoming more… forthcoming, was the only word she could think of. She wasn't as afraid to share her feelings with Naruto anymore, maybe he was rubbing off on her, or maybe she just didn't have anything left to hide. Whatever it was, she was glad for the change in her life, and, as far as she was concerned, she'd be ecstatic if this trip never ended. She was much happier on the road with Naruto-kun than she could ever remember being in the Hyuga compound.

Breakfast was a light affair. Well, light for Naruto anyway, he managed to down five plates of eggs, two and a half plates of bacon, and nearly a loaf of bread. Hinata was really beginning to wonder where he packed away all that food. Was his stomach really that large, or was it a doorway into some other universe?

However, she didn't have a lot of time to think about it, for, as soon as breakfast was done with, Kiyoshi whisked her away to begin their training in earnest. After traveling a small distance from the town, Hinata and Kiyoshi were standing in the middle of the forest.

"Okay, Hinata first things first. Tell me, what have you learned under the tutelage of your father and the Hyuga clan?" Kiyoshi asked.

"W-well, Kiyoshi-sama, I learned the Jyuuken…" Hinata said.

"Is that all?" Kiyoshi asked.

"Y-yes, according to clan tradition, Hyugas need no other jutsu." Hinata repeated what had been drilled into her head as a child.

Kiyoshi sighed, "Damned Hyuga pride. Tell me, Hinata, what would you do if you faced an enemy that specialized in attacking from long range? He either uses jutsu or throwing weapons, how would you approach the fight, being limited to your family's fighting style?"

Hinata thought for a moment, "There's only one ability in the Hyuga repertoire to combat such an opponent…"

"The Eight Trigrams Air Palm." Kiyoshi finished for her, "However that ability is fairly weak, and almost useless at the ranges in which a jutsu specialist likes to operate at. You see, your family's way of thinking is flawed. Due to there arrogance and pride, they believe that their familial taijutsu skills can defeat any and all opponents with no help from outside sources. While this may be true in close-quarters or against other short-to-mid range fighters, your clan suffers greatly at the hands of mid-to-long and pure long range specialists, often having to rely on your teammates or some form of trickery to defeat your opponents. Do you agree?"

"Yes, Kiyoshi-sensei." Hinata agreed, "It's another thing about my clan that needs to be changed, we have let ourselves stagnate. I hear father occasionally complain about the lack of jonin in the Hyuga house, because Konoha's philosophies about what makes a jonin has changed. The newer jonin are expected to be more well-rounded, and be able to work well in a variety of situations."

"Very good, the key to survival for any ninja is the ability to adapt to any given situation. I know your family's taijutsu is top notch, and that nothing I can teach you could be better. So I'll be focusing on teaching long to mid range attacks. Now, can you tell me what your affinities are?" Kiyoshi asked, he hoped she knew because he didn't have any chakra sensor papers on him.

"Yes, Earth and Wind." Hinata answered.

"Well, we share one element at least, that'll make things at least a little easier, sadly I don't know any Earth jutsu, it's my weakest element. I myself am Lightning and Wind." Kiyoshi informed her, "But to start your training I think we'll stick with simple non-elemental jutsu for the moment. Watch closely."

Kiyoshi whipped out a single shuriken, and chucked it lazily at a tree, and then quickly ran through some signs, but not so fast that Hinata couldn't pick up each individual sign. "Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!" The one shuriken became twenty, each as deadly as the original.

"That is a variant of the Shadow Clone Jutsu. The Shadow Shuriken Jutsu uses much less chakra, as all you're doing is making copies of the shuriken, instead of copies of yourself. It's good for a couple of reasons. The first is that it allows you to stretch the usefulness of your supplies, obviously one shuriken becoming ten or twenty is makes you supply of weapons last much longer. The second is that the expanded area of the attack makes it harder for your opponent to successfully dodge the attack and if the enemy is bunched up, you can attack multiple of enemies at once." Kiyoshi explained.

"B-but, there's weaknesses to it too." Hinata pointed out.

Kiyoshi was happy, at least his student was observant, "Explain."

"F-First, you have to be extremely quick, or be throwing over a long distance to have enough time to complete the jutsu effectively, or your shuriken will hit the target before the jutsu's completion. Also, shuriken, while effective for distracting or mildly injuring, are not very lethal in comparisons with other weapons, making this attack good more for crowd control than actually stopping an enemy." Hinata answered.

"Very good. That is true. However, even having one longer range jutsu at your disposal can throw your opponent off enough for you to land a telling blow." Kiyoshi replied, "Now, you caught all of the seals used correct?"

"Yes, sensei" Hinata affirmed.

"Good, I want you to start throwing at a tree fifty yards away, and see if you can usefully complete the jutsu before impact." Kiyoshi stated.

Hinata nodded and got to work. She had to admit, her speed with hand signs was lacking, she had mastered the molding of the chakra of Byakugan to where she could easily use only one seal or no seals, and since the Jyuuken didn't require seals, she had little use for them. It took her a few tries before she was able to do it. Even then, she just barely got the jutsu off in time.

"Forty-five yards!" Kiyoshi called out. Hinata stepped closer to the tree and began again.

-------------------

Naruto was still working on that damn rubber ball. It just hurt so damn much as he poured chakra into the ball. _Wait a second… It hurts as I build up and release chakra. This is all about power, but I'm releasing chakra into the ball as soon as a build it up. If I use the pain I feel as a gauge of the chakra I'm building, then once I hit my tolerance level release all into the ball and spin it, the might just give me enough force to pop the ball._

Naruto decided to give his idea a shot. He assumed his normal stance and began to build up the chakra in his arms. _Just a little more… come on… more… there!_ Naruto then lashed out at the ball, and clasped the top as he finished his rotation. The distortion and power was definitely stronger, but he was a little miffed when the ball didn't explode. It did, however, burst. One not-so-small hole was blown out of the side of the ball. _Better than nothing, I guess. At least it's progress._

"Very good, kid." Jiraiya called out as he came over to the area where Naruto was training.

"But it didn't go 'pop' like yours did." Naruto said.

"No it didn't, but it did burst, and that means your close. The rest is really a simple trick." Jiraiya said.

"Really! What's the trick?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"Give me your hand." Jiraiya said and Naruto complied. Jiraiya took out his ink brush for seals and made a little spiral mark in Naruto's hand, "There ya go, brat."

"What's this, Ero-sennin?" Naruto asked as he stared at his hand.

"Simple, it's a focus for your concentration." Jiraiya said as he whipped out a blank piece of paper, "You see this paper?"

Naruto looked at the blank paper, "Yeah, so?"

Jiraiya then drew the same spiral mark on the paper, "Okay how about now?"

"What's the point?" Naruto asked.

"Simple, I bet when you looked at the blank sheet, you're attention wandered about the page right?" Jiraiya said as Naruto nodded his head, "Where is your attention focused when you look at it now?"

"On the dot in the center… Wait. Is that what this thing is for, to center my chakra?" Naruto inquired.

"Something like that. When you're concentrating and building up your chakra, focus on that point, and it should be a lot easier to unleash the power you need to pop the ball." Jiraiya explained. "Anyway, you've done pretty good so far today, wanna take a break and go check on Hinata?"

"Definitely, I can't wait to tell her I finally at least put a hole in that damned ball." Naruto said excitedly.

"Alright, kid, let's go." Jiraiya said as he led Naruto off to the section of the forest where Hinata and Kiyoshi were training.

* * *

"Very good, Hinata." Kiyoshi said, "You've gotten down to inside twenty five yards. Once you can get it down to inside fifteen, you should be ready to actually use it in combat."

"Thank you, Kiyoshi-sensei." Hinata accepted the praise graciously. She was currently resting with her hands on her knees. He had been right, while not as taxing as the second stage Rasengan training, she still felt drained. She had been throwing and multiplying shuriken all morning.

"We will continue after grabbing some lunch." Kiyoshi said.

"Hai." Hinata acknowledged.

"Hinata-hime!" Hinata heard the familiar voice as she turned around to behold a very happy Naruto dashing at her at full speed. She did the only thing she could do, brace for impact.

An impact it was too, Naruto practically tackled her as he hugged her and they both tumbled over a few times. "Hey, guess what?" Naruto said as his laughter and Hinata's giggles died down.

"What is it, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"I finally managed to put a hole on the ball." Naruto said happily.

"I told you." Hinata replied, equally as happy.

"I know, watch." Naruto said as he got up and took another rubber ball from Jiraiya.

Hinata activated her Byakugan as she watched what Naruto was doing. His stance was the same, but she noticed as he began to build up chakra, he didn't immediately release it into the ball, as they had been, he kept it bottled up, and then after he gathered chakra for a few moments, he released it all at the same time. The result was almost like a small explosion inside the ball, and promptly ripped a hole in the side.

"I see…" Hinata said.

"Anyway, how's your training going?" Naruto asked.

Kiyoshi answered for her, "Very well, actually. Honestly, she's progressing faster than I thought she would be." Hinata blushed slightly at the compliment, as she was prone to do.

"Well, of course." Naruto said confidently, "My Hinata-hime is amazing!" Hinata's blush deepened at that.

Kiyoshi let out a small laugh, "Well, we were getting ready to break for lunch, care to join us?"

"Sure." Jiraiya answered, "I was starting to get hungry. I still haven't found anyone that's heard anything solid about Tsunade."

"Figures." Kiyoshi said, "That woman is good at disappearing when she wants to. Well, let's go, I'm rather hungry myself."

The four of them walked back into town to enjoy a nice lunch before resuming their respective training.

----------------

The rest of the day continued the same as the beginning. Hinata managed to make it to fifteen yards with the Shadow Shuriken Jutsu. She and Kiyoshi then went over to Naruto, so she could train with him for the remainder of the day. Naruto told her about the trick he had used, and she mimicked what he had done. While she still wasn't able to even put a hole in the ball, she managed to make it distort a little, much to her delight.

"Way to go, Hinata." Kiyoshi said as the ball returned to normal, "That's a good sign that your chakra power is starting to improve. Originally, I thought it could take you years to fully master the Rasengan. However, at the rate you seem to be going, it'll probably be somewhere between six to nine months. What do you say, Jiraiya?"

Naruto and Hinata looked around, they didn't sense Jiraiya's presence. They eventually spotted him standing in a tree. "Yeah, I'd say probably eight or nine, depending on how much she's able to train at it. I know it's going on the backburner while she trains in other things, so it could be possible for it to take up to a year."

"Yeah! What about me?" Naruto yelled. The area was strewn with rubber balls with large holes popped in the sides.

"I'd say a few more weeks, since it's all you're focused on right now. But…" Jiraiya looked around at the rubber balls, "I was really expecting you do have gotten past this part by now."

Naruto looked down at his hand with the mark, "You told me the trick, but I just can't seem to do it."

"You'll get it, Naruto-kun. You always do." Hinata reassured him. Naruto just turned to her and gave one of his trademark grins and nodded.

Kiyoshi sighed, those two kids were always doing that. One getting down, and the other picking the first one back up. "Anyway, any more luck on finding anything about Tsunade?"

"None." Jiraiya answered. "I've checked almost all the gambling dens, and most of the hotels and bars, and all anyone knows is only that she was here for a few days and left about a week ago."

Kiyoshi sighed again, he had always thought Tsunade was a… difficult one. "Well then, what do you think we should do?"

"I say we stay here one more day and try to get a solid lead, if we don't get one. I'd say our best bet is to head to Tanzaku Town the following morning. It's well known for its casinos and gambling dens, it the most likely destination for Tsunade." Jiraiya answered.

The conversation was cut short by a loud rumble from the middle of the clearing. Hinata almost jumped out of her sandals at the sound. Naruto grinned and rubbed the back of his head in his usual way.

"Heh, I'm really hungry. We going to get dinner?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, I could use a bite too." Jiraiya said. "Training's over for today, let's go."

---------------

After another night watching fireworks, and then eating breakfast together, Naruto and Hinata parted ways for the day. Kiyoshi was planning on teaching Hinata a jutsu he had picked up on his travels. Fuuton: Hitofuki was a mid-strength wind jutsu that expelled a large amount of air from around the user. It was good as a defensive maneuver, and in an area with a lot of debris, or things to run into, like a forest, it could be a surprising offensive maneuver.

Naruto was off on his own in the small clearing he had been training in since they had arrived in this town. His arms felt like someone dipped them in acid then decided to rub salt all over the wounds, and then set his arms on fire. He'd only been training for a couple of hours, it usually didn't start hurting so much until after lunch. Naruto guessed that it was due to him doing this a lot over the last days.

Naruto collapsed and laid on his back, staring into the sky trying to figure out what he was doing wrong. Suddenly, he felt a wind blow from across the chasm which held the town, from where Hinata was training. He watched as some leaves swirled around his head, until one landed right on his forehead. That brought back memories. He, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Chouji had all skipped out on classes that day, and Iruka-sensei had caught them. In detention, Iruka had tried to make them each try to hold a leaf on their forehead using nothing but chakra, he said it was to help with concentration. However, the four boys ran out of the school as soon as Iruka's attention wavered.

"Man, that exercise would have really helped me here. I'm so dumb." Naruto said to himself, "But it's too late for regrets."

Naruto licked his thumb and used it to smear the marking on his hand into a crude version of the leaf symbol on his headband, "I can do this!" Naruto said as he got back to his feet.

_Concentrate, focus on the leaf and nothing but the leaf. _Naruto chanted in his head as he closed his eyes. Soon, his mind's eye could see nothing but the symbol for the leaf. He could see his chakra swirling around it. _NOW!_

Naruto launched into his usual pattern for popping the ball. He could feel the difference this time, he held the ball low as he finished his rotation. Not even a moment later, the ball exploded, and took out a little of the ground with it. The force of the explosion was so much that it blew Naruto backwards. Naruto was sailing through the air, when he felt someone catch him.

"Looks like stage two is complete, kid." Jiraiya said as he smiled down at his student.

"Good, now I can start the third stage." Naruto said weakly. The fact of the matter was, Naruto was drained.

"Not yet, take it easy for the moment. I figured out where Tsunade is going. Turns out my hunch is right, and she went to Tanzaku Town. I begin teaching you the third step on the way there. For now, let's go tell Hinata and Kiyoshi the good news."

-----------------

Kiyoshi was more than pleased. While Hinata had some self-confidence issues, if you could convince her she wasn't going to immediately fail at everything, she was a sponge for learning. She responded well to positive feedback, and as long as you hinted at something a little more, or that there was something else to learn, she would go at it until she dropped. She seemed to take naturally to the Fuuton: Hitofuki. They'd only been training for the morning with the technique, and she was already making pretty solid bursts of air. Nothing that could truly be used as an attack, or for defense, but she was easily ripping a few leaves off trees.

Kiyoshi felt Naruto and Jiraiya's presence coming closer. Kiyoshi was just waiting for it now…

"Hinata-hime!" Naruto said as he took off at a dash.

…there we go. The scene played out like it did yesterday, with Naruto practically tackling Hinata into the ground. Kiyoshi sighed, the first few times they did stuff like this, it was cute. Now, it was starting to get annoying.

"What are you two doing here?" Kiyoshi asked as Jiraiya caught up to his hyperactive student.

"Well, he finished stage two, and I finally got a lead." Jiraiya said, as they watched Naruto tell Hinata all about blowing up the rubber ball.

"So where did she go?" Kiyoshi asked.

"Tanzaku Town, like I figured she would. We're lucky, it's only a day away, and with all its casinos and gambling dens, she should be there for quite a while. We should be able to catch her." Jiraiya answered.

"So when do you want to leave?"

"As soon as possible." Jiraiya said.

Both Hinata and Naruto stopped as they heard the last part, and both started at their respective sensei.

"Right now?" Hinata asked.

"Yes." Jiraiya answered, "We should make it there by sundown."

"But, Ero-sennin, the final night of the festival is tonight, and the fireworks display is supposed to be spectacular, Hinata and me were really wanting to stay and watch." Naruto complained.

"Naruto, we have a mission to complete." Jiraiya said.

"I know, but you said that Tsunade would be there for a while, right. Is one day going to make that much of a difference?" Naruto pleaded.

"Please, Jiraiya-sama, Kiyoshi-sensei. It would mean a lot to us." Hinata pleaded as well.

Kiyoshi looked at Jiraiya. Jiraiya shrugged at him. Kiyoshi just sighed.

"You two are getting to be very… troublesome, as a Nara would say." Kiyoshi stated. "I guess we can leave out tomorrow morning. But that means I got you both for the rest of the day, got it. Now, Hinata, back to work. Naruto, come over here." Hinata nodded with a smile as she went back to working her jutsu.

"Yo." Naruto said happily as he trotted over.

"Naruto, what taijutsu style do you use?" Kiyoshi asked as he looked over to Jiraiya, just to make sure this is what he wanted. Jiraiya nodded.

"Ummm… I really don't have a style. I just improvise." Naruto said.

"I see, so you're little more than a street brawler." Kiyoshi said. "Jiraiya told me as much. As you may know, each taijutsu style has it's own strengths and weaknesses, and knowing multiple kinds can be very beneficial. Jiraiya has asked me to introduce you to my style of taijutsu, the Talon Style. It's about quick strikes and focuses on attacking the vulnerable spots of a person's body, such as the eyes. An opponent that cannot see, most times, is an opponent that cannot kill you."

Naruto nodded, "I'll try it out. I've never had anyone interested in me enough to teach me anything but the academy basics."

Kiyoshi nodded, then dropped into his form. His legs slightly bent and a shoulder length apart, and his arms out in front of him, one stretched out and one kept close. His fingers were curled to mimic the look of a talons of a bird. "Come, I'll show you what this style is all about."

Naruto charged at Kiyoshi, who immediately snapped out and aimed a gouge at Naruto's eyes. Naruto quickly stopped his advance and leapt backwards to avoid the blow. Naruto tried again to advance, and was met with another eye gouge. Naruto kept trying and was met with eye gouges and throat attacks.

"You're opponent's head and neck are usually two of the weaker parts of their body. It's hard to train the muscles and tissues in those areas against attack." Kiyoshi explained, "If you add just a little chakra to your attacks, similar to the Hyuuga Jyuuken, you can cause almost irreparable damage to things such as the eyes, ears, and windpipe. What do you think?"

"I'll learn it." Naruto said confidently, "It's better than being a 'street brawler.'"

Kiyoshi grinned, "Yes, I suppose it is."

"But, why didn't ero-sennin teach me his own style?" Naruto asked.

"Because his style is like yours, Naruto. Jiraiya never bothered learning an actual style, just taking bits and pieces, and improvising like you do. While that kind of fighting can be beneficial in how unpredictable it can be. It takes a long time to assimilate enough different moves to make an effective style of your own. Learning a set taijutsu style will give you something to lean on in case your 'brawling' skills fail you." Kiyoshi explained.

"I understand." Naruto said.

"Good, now I will instruct you in the basic forms and strikes of the Talon Style." Kiyoshi said, "Try to follow my movements and I'll correct you."

Naruto did as he was told and followed Kiyoshi's every move. Hinata continued to make progress with her new wind jutsu. Both genin were looking forward to that night, they had enjoyed the fireworks displays for the last couple of nights, and they were hoping this one would blow them away.

* * *

A/N

I appreciate the feedback on the lemon issue. Rest assured, if it does happen, it is not happening until much much later in the story. It will definitely be Shippuden era before I'd even think of doing something like that.

For those of you who like the fluffy stuff, I think there's enough in here to kill a horse, or elephant, or some other large creature. Not to mention the first kiss is in there too. If you're the more action oriented person, I'm sorry for this one, but the next one will be right up your alley I promise.

Remember, please review, it makes me happy to see if you all are happy. Also, constructive criticism is always appreciated, if you see something that could use improvements and have ideas, please tell me.

I hope you enjoyed Chapter 10. Thanks for reading.


	11. Chapter 11 Yonnin No More

Four Man Squads

Chapter 11 - Yonnin No More

Hinata and Naruto were beside themselves with excitement. From all the talk they had heard around the village, the last night of the Apple Festival was supposed to have the largest and most spectacular fireworks display outside of the capitol. They took up the same spot they had over the last couple of nights, the roof of the small inn where they were staying.

"Are you ready, hime?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, Naruto-kun." She said as she settled in closer to her love and rested her head on his shoulder. The inn's roof was slanted just enough for them to lay down easily and watch the sky.

The couple didn't have to wait long before the show started. The display began just as others had. Some smaller explosions, and some nice multicolored flowers. Soon, the display moved into some more exotic combinations. There were fireworks that exploded into what looked like strobe lights and some others exploded into animals. After that, the display moved into full formations of apple shaped explosions, as well as some of the most entrancing colors either of them had ever seen. While up until now fireworks that produced two colors had been used on occasion, they saw a few that exploded into as many as five or six colors, and some that seemed to change colors while in the sky.

This display had easily lasted half again as long as any before it, and Hinata and Naruto were both enthralled by the display. That was until they felt someone using a large amount of chakra.

"What is that?" Hinata asked, immediately on guard.

"I don't know. Can you see where it's coming from?" Naruto replied as he readied himself as well.

Hinata quickly activated her Byakugan. She saw the source of the chakra, it was a man standing beside the fireworks launchers. He was channeling his chakra into a very, very large firecracker.

"Someone is pumping chakra into one of the fireworks." Hinata said as she watched intently.

"Maybe it's part of the finale." Naruto suggested.

"Maybe…" Hinata said as the firecracker launched into the air. Naruto looked up at it and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Nothing we can do about it now." Naruto said as they both watched the explosive rise higher and higher into the sky. Any moment now…

The resulting display of colors, formations, and sheer magnitude put everything else they had seen to shame. The explosion lit up the town and surrounding forest, like having day in the middle of the night. Any color anyone could ever imagine were present. Apples that were redder than red, and flowers that had colors so vivid that it should have been impossible for them to exist at all. Naruto and Hinata just gawked, it was amazing. The scene played out over the entire sky. They actually had to look around them to see all of it, and it lasted so long, much longer than a normal firework.

"Amazing…" Naruto managed to mutter.

Hinata couldn't even find words to say. She had never seen anything like, and sincerely doubted she would ever see anything comparable again.

The scene stayed in the air for an impossible couple of minutes before finally beginning to fade away. Naruto and Hinata just watched, still hypnotized by the sheer beauty of the display.

"That is the second most beautiful thing I have ever seen." Naruto said as the last remnants of the chakra-enhanced firecracker dissipated.

_Second most? _Hinata let her curiosity get the better of her, "What's the first, Naruto-kun?"

"You." Naruto said simply as he turned his gaze to his lavender-eyed beauty.

Hinata blushed at the comment, but pulled herself and him into a deeper embrace. Naruto wrapped his other arm around her. Hinata locked eyes with Naruto, and both of them were thinking the same thing as their faces moved closer and they shared a kiss. They stayed that way for what seemed like both and eternity and a fleeting moment. When they finally broke apart, they saw that all the other spectators were returning home.

"I guess we should head in. We've got an early start tomorrow." Naruto said as he looked around, arms still wrapped around Hinata.

"Yes, we should." Hinata replied. With that, Naruto dropped one of his arms, as Hinata did the same, and both of their other arms fell to find each other's hand as they descended from the roof and into the hotel.

* * *

"Well wasn't that cute?" Jiraiya said as they watched the young couple retreat back into the hotel. During the exhibition, Jiraiya had pulled out a notebook and had been taking notes furiously.

Kiyoshi watched as Jiraiya finished his note-taking, "Yes it was. However, if I ever see anything like this in one of your books, I will castrate you."

"But, I thought you didn't like violence, Kiyoshi." Jiraiya answered.

"I don't, but I will not have you spinning what they have for your or your readers' perverse pleasure. I'm sure Tsunade would agree with me when we meet with her." Kiyoshi stated.

"You wouldn't tell her, would you? She'd kill me." Jiraiya pleaded.

"Yes, I would, and, yes, she will." Kiyoshi stated as he turned from the perverted sage. "Goodnight, Jiraiya." With that, Kiyoshi disappeared in a swirl of leaves and feathers.

* * *

All four of them woke early the next morning. The plan was to arrive in Tanzaku by late afternoon, and hopefully find Tsunade that night or early the next morning. Naruto and Hinata both were sad to leave the town, they both had extremely enjoyed their time there. Naruto made a silent vow to come back again some time, hopefully next year.

"Alright, kiddos." Jiraiya said. "Let's get rollin', we got a Hokage to find."

"Don't go jumping around and acting like a kid." Naruto said grumpily.

"What's wrong with you, brat?" Jiraiya asked, usually the kid was bouncing off the walls.

"We're in the middle of training. You said there's three steps, and I've done two. What's the third step?" Naruto said.

"I see, don't worry. The third step can be done while walking." Jiraiya said as he whipped out an empty balloon, blew it up, and tied it. "Here."

Naruto caught the balloon after Jiraiya tossed it to him.

"This looks like a normal balloon." Naruto said as he inspected the balloon.

"It is." Jiraiya affirmed, "The first step was spin, the second was power. The final step is all about this…" Jiraiya took another balloon and held it in his hand.

"What's 'this'. I don't see anything." Naruto said impatiently.

"It looks like I'm just holding the balloon, but let's see what's going on inside of the balloon." Jiraiya answered as he held out his left hand. The chakra Jiraiya used was visible, it began to swirl around in his hand and seemed to pick up in rotation and power, but maintained a perfect spherical form.

"The same thing as that is in the balloon?" Naruto asked, disbelievingly.

"Yeah. Listen up, this third step is about taking what you learned from the previous two and putting them together with more strength. Basically, you max out the spin and the power while creating a wall on the inside of the balloon and concentrate your power in that small area." Jiraiya explained.

"So I do everything from the last two steps, and try not to pop the balloon." Naruto condensed the explanation.

"You got it, you're getting quicker, aren't you?" Jiraiya half teased half complimented.

"But, why do I have to do this?" Naruto asked.

"This is why…" Jiraiya said as he approached a tree, "This is the Rasengan after the second step…" Jiraiya hit the trunk with a half-made Rasengan. The jutsu cut some nice slices into the bark in a spiral pattern.

"That's pretty cool!" Naruto exclaimed.

"This is the Rasengan when you complete it…" Jiraiya continued as he formed a complete Rasengan and crashed it into the tree, carving clean through the trunk and almost felling the tree. "If you can keep the maelstrom that is the Rasengan in this tight form, it will spin faster, and the power will not be disbursed so easily when you hit the enemy with it."

Naruto stared at his balloon, _I can do this. _Naruto closed his eyes and focused on the leaf mark on his palm. Soon he lashed out at the balloon, and tried to contain the spin and power of the jutsu. He managed alright for a few moments before he lost containment and the balloon burst in a small explosion of wind.

Jiraiya noticed that Naruto hadn't put all of his power into the jutsu, "No slacking off! You have to use one-hundred percent of your spin and power. I told you this is a high-level jutsu, A-rank. Now that you know what to do, let's get a move on."

"But, I need to practice." Naruto complained.

"We took some extra time so you and Hinata could see your fireworks. There's no guarantee Tsunade we'll stay in Tanzaku for long. It's not like an old friend is going to pop up and start chatting. You'll have to practice while walking." Kiyoshi said, "That means you too, Hinata. While I can't really teach you jutsu like this, you still have the second step to pass."

Naruto grunted his acceptance. Hinata nodded at her sensei as she took up the rubber ball.

"Remember to pace yourself though, Hinata. It's going to be a lot harder trying to do it while you're walking." Kiyoshi warned. Hinata nodded again and turned her focus back onto the rubber ball.

Afterwards, the four of them took off on the path to Tanzaku. Naruto went through a countless number of balloons trying to master the Rasengan, but he was making progress. Hinata was making progress as well, if ever so slightly, in the second stage. After traveling for about nine hours, they arrived in Tanzaku.

Jiraiya and Kiyoshi both began checking all of the gambling dens and casinos in the large town. While they got affirmation that Tsunade was in the town, neither could find out her current location or where she was staying.

"Where did she go? We know she hasn't left yet." Jiraiya said as they walked down the street.

"There's a castle in this town. It's possible she went to check it out, also it might I might be able to find her from the someplace higher up." Kiyoshi said, "I do have really good eyes."

"Works for me, let's go." Jiraiya said.

Jiraiya, Kiyoshi, Hinata, and Naruto were all traveling up the path to the castle, when they noticed something was wrong.

"Um… Where's the castle?" Hinata asked.

"It looks to be demolished." Kiyoshi stated as a man ran by them.

"Hey, you!" Jiraiya yelled at the man, "What the hell happened to the castle?"

The man stopped and yelled his reply as he looked around nervously, "You guys should run away! There's a demon beast up there!"

"Demon beast?" Naruto asked.

"What exactly is this demon you speak of?" Kiyoshi inquired.

"A huge snake! It destroyed the castle!" the man said before he took off at a run again, not wanting to stick around anymore.

"Hey, wait! How big was it? I saw one in my village." Naruto yelled at the retreating man.

"Naruto, it's the same snake you saw back in Konoha." Jiraiya said as he started to trudge off towards the demolished castle.

"T-t-then, t-that means i-it's…" Hinata stammered.

"Orochimaru." Kiyoshi and Jiraiya said in unison as they picked up the pace, their students following quickly.

The two Yonnin landed on another part of the street, looking at a destroyed wall. Kiyoshi inspected the rubble.

"Definitely Tsunade's handiwork." Kiyoshi said.

"So we just missed her." Jiraiya said. Naruto and Hinata landed beside them.

"I don't see a giant snake." Naruto said as he looked around.

"It's over. It doesn't seem Tsunade or Orochimaru are here anymore. We should head back into town. Tsunade will be there. If there had been a battle between them, we would have seen it and felt it." Kiyoshi said.

"Yes, let's head back." Jiraiya replied. Hinata and Naruto quickly complied and followed their sensei back into town. Neither one of them had any desire to face Orochimaru again. Night was beginning to fall as the group finally made it back into town.

* * *

Jiraiya walked up to the door of a tavern, "Let's stop and eat dinner here."

"But, that's a pub." Naruto complained.

"Dumbass, information is always found in places like this." Jiraiya said as he entered the pub. He was pleasantly surprised to see the big breasted blond sitting in a booth with the telltale purple diamond in her forehead. "Hey Tsunade!" Jiraiya called out to the woman, much to her surprise.

"Jiraiya?" Tsunade said as she took in the next few people to walk through the door. A blond-haired ninja in a dark orange and black jumpsuit, a main family Hyuga, and… "Kiyoshi? What are you two doing here? Also, why are you traveling with a main family Hyuga, Kiyoshi? I thought you hated them."

"It's a long story." Kiyoshi said, "But, I see something in Hinata here that gives me hope for the future of the Hyuga. She's my apprentice."

"Well, that's a hell of a thing." Tsunade said, "I wouldn't have bet a penny on you ever taking another Hyuga on as apprentice after Hizashi."

"I would have agreed with you about a week ago." Kiyoshi stated, "But that's not the point of our visit."

"Well, then. Sit and order something and you can explain it all to me." Tsunade said as the two Yonnin and their apprentices sat down and ordered some food.

After enjoying a meal, and a lot of sake, Tsunade started the conversation back up. "I met with someone who brings back lots of bad memories."

"Orochimaru." Kiyoshi stated more as fact than question.

"Did anything happen?" Jiraiya asked.

Tsunade's assistant shot her a look, which Tsunade quashed with a stare of her own. A small altercation that did not get past Kiyoshi or Jiraiya. "Nothing much, just a little greeting. Anyway, why did you guys come to see me?"

"To tell you the truth. Konoha has issued a request for you to be the Godaime Hokage." Jiraiya said to looks of shock from Tsunade and her assistant. "The Sandaime has…"

"It was Orochimaru's work." Tsunade finished for Jiraiya, "He told me himself."

Naruto clutched his chopsticks hard until they snapped in his hands. He was seething. While he wasn't particularly close to the Sandaime, he had respected the old man, and the old man had been one of the few who respected him in return. "Damn that snake bastard."

"Who's the boy?" Tsunade asked.

"My new apprentice, Naruto Uzumaki." Jiraiya answered, "So, what's your answer? Do you accept the position?"

"No, I decline." Tsunade said simply, to the shock of everyone in the room. "Jiraiya, your new apprentice seems worse than your previous one."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Naruto shouted.

"Well, it's hard for anyone to be compared to the Yondaime." Jiraiya said, "He really had the talent to become a top notch ninja. He was smart and reliable, and handsome like me too."

"But, even the Yondaime died quickly…" Tsunade said, "He gave up his life for the village. Life is different from money. It can't be gambled that easily, and whoever puts it at risk so easily is a fool. My grandfather, the Shodaime, and the Nidaime both focused too much on bringing peace to our home. As a result, they died in the middle of their dreams, just like losers."

"You've changed, Tsunade. I don't know what your thinking, but that was harsh." Kiyoshi said, "Peace is a dream worth chasing, no matter how long you have to chase it."

"Age changes people, Kiyoshi. I am in my fifties." Tsunade replied, "It's the same for Sarutobi-san. He was too old to live in his dreams, no wonder he died. Being Hokage is a shitty job, no one but a fool would do it."

Naruto had heard enough. He jumped up onto the table, fists clinched, ready to beat some sense into this damned woman. He was about to launch himself at her when he felt hands grab him from behind.

"Let me go!" Naruto roared.

"Don't you realize we're in a bar?" Jiraiya asked. He knew the answer to his question, Naruto didn't give a damn.

"Tsunade-sama…" the assistant whispered.

"I can't forgive anyone who says bad things about out Hokage or the Yondaime." Naruto stated as he settled down, but he began to crack his knuckles, "I don't care if she is a woman. I'm going to knock some sense into her sorry ass."

Tsunade stood and leaned onto the table, "You've got some guts to talk to me like that, boy. Let's take this outside."

"Tsunade-sama…" the assistant tried to plea with her master, but Tsunade was having none of it.

* * *

Tsunade and Naruto stood off in the middle of the street. Tsunade's assistant on one side of the street and Hinata, Jiraiya, and Kiyoshi on the other.

"Tsunade, please stop this. This is not the wisest course of action." Kiyoshi stated.

"Naruto-kun, please…" Hinata pleaded.

Jiraiya sighed as Tsunade disregarded the advice from her old teammate, "I'm one of the legendary Yonnin. I don't even need to be serious to take on this little boy."

"Shut up!" Naruto yelled at her. He was now oblivious to everything else. He would kick Tsunade's ass and tie her up and drag her back to be the Hokage.

"One finger should be enough." Tsunade said as she pointed her right index finger to the sky.

Naruto said nothing in reply to her taunt and drew a kunai. He then began to charge the lone kunoichi of the fabled Yonnin. He threw a shuriken to try and throw her off balance and then made a stab with his kunai.

Tsunade avoided both the thrown weapon and the lunge. While dropping low of the lunge she used her finger to grasp the kunai through the hole at the bottom of the handle and removed the weapon from Naruto's grasp. She quickly spun the kunai around her finger, grabbed it, and used it to knock off Naruto's forehead protector.

It all happened in a blink of an eye, and Naruto could barely keep up. After opening his eyes after Tsunade had knocked his forehead protector off, he was staring right at her finger, preparing to flick him in his unprotected forehead. He watched, seemingly in slow motion, as the finger made contact with his head, and he was sent flying.

_Damn she only hit me with one finger._ Naruto thought as he regathered his senses. As he was crouched, a blur streaked down right in front of him. Naruto looked down to see his kunai from earlier. A clang rang out as his forehead protector landed a little ways away, between him and Tsunade.

"Hey, kid. I have one question before you pass out." Tsunade said as she watched Naruto try to regain his wits, "Why do you get so excited from just hearing the word 'Hokage'?"

Naruto slowly made his way to his feet as he replied, "Unlike you, I really want to inherit the name 'Hokage', and I will, because it is my dream to become the Hokage."

Tsunade was shocked. This kid reminded her so much of the two she had lost, the ones Orochimaru had promised to bring back. Dan, her lover, and Nawaki, her younger brother, both had the same dream.

Naruto recognized that Tsunade seemed to have taken a trip down memory lane and was distracted. _She's vulnerable, I need to use the Rasengan. _Naruto began to focus on his chakra and making the perfect sphere. Naruto lashed out at the air around his left palm, and began forming the Rasengan.

Tsunade was snapped out of her reverie as she noticed what Naruto was coming at her with. She took an involuntary step back, as she had seen this jutsu before and knew full well what it was capable of.

"Take this!" Naruto yelled.

It was too late. Tsunade didn't have time to dodge, so she did the only thing she could do. She took her finger and hit the ground. The power of the attack created a fissure in the ground which Naruto promptly fell into. Naruto's Rasengan, incomplete though it may be, impacted the ground in front of Tsunade and carved out a nice little hole in the ground.

Naruto climbed up out of the fissure that Tsunade had created, her assistant ran over to him.

"Are you okay?" the raven-haired woman asked.

"Jiraiya! Is it you who is teaching him the Rasengan?" Tsunade asked.

"I am his sensei… in principle." Jiraiya answered.

"The only people that can use that jutsu are you and the Yondaime. Teaching him something he cannot do, and acting like his sensei… It's better if he doesn't think that way, so he won't joke about foolish dreams of becoming Hokage."

Naruto's anger burned within him again, "It's not a joke, you idiot! All I need is three days, and I can master the Rasengan. Just watch!"

Tsunade smirked at him, "Nice words, brat. A man's word should never be taken back."

Naruto showed her a fierce grin, "I don't go back on my word. That is my nindo."

"Is that so?" Tsunade said, "Then, if you can master the Rasengan in a week, I will acknowledge that you could become the Hokage, and I'll give you my necklace."

"Tsunade-sama, that is your precious…" Tsunade's assistant said but never got to finish her statement.

"I don't want that ugly necklace." Naruto said.

"Don't say that, Naruto." Kiyoshi stated, "That necklace is an heirloom of the Shodaime Hokage, Tsunade's grandfather. If you sold it, you could possibly buy a small country with it."

"Alright then, but if I win. It isn't me who receives the necklace." Naruto said.

"Who then?" Tsunade asked.

"Her." Naruto said as he pointed to Hinata, "It'd look a lot better around my hime's neck than mine or yours."

"Fine." Tsunade answered, "But, if I win, I take all your money." As she finished the statement she showed off Naruto's frog wallet, which was packed full of money.

"My wallet!" Naruto shouted, _When did she take it?_

"What are you doing?" The assistant said, trying to make herself heard, "That necklace is…"

"It doesn't matter, it's not like the kid can finish that jutsu in a week. Let's go Shizune." Tsunade cut Shizune off as she turned to leave.

"Tsunade, can we have a drink together?" Jiraiya asked as Tsunade left, "It's been awhile." Jiraiya turned to Kiyoshi, who nodded in silent agreement.

"Hinata, Naruto, and Shizune, would you mind going and finding a hotel to stay in tonight while the three of us catch up on old times?" Kiyoshi asked.

"Okay." Shizune nodded in agreement.

"Hai, Kiyoshi-sensei." Hinata said as she ran over to Naruto, giving him a cursory inspection.

The three Yonnin watched as their apprentices took off. Soon, they found themselves sitting in a small bar.

"You've become even more beautiful." Jiraiya stated as they began to drink.

"It's only you that I don't date, Jiraiya." Tsunade teased with a smirk.

"It's not like I'm interested." Jiraiya said, and then added in a whisper, "After all, you're a fifty-year-old old woman."

"What was that?" Tsunade asked, slightly annoyed.

"Nothing, you must be hearing things." Jiraiya responded quickly.

Kiyoshi sighed and enjoyed his drink. Even after decades of knowing each other, Jiraiya and Tsunade still acted like little kids around each other sometimes. He felt it was time to speak up, "Tsunade, are you worried?"

"About what?" Tsunade answered.

"Naruto and the bet." Kiyoshi informed her.

"No." Tsunade answered simply.

"You acted very childishly, Tsunade. Even if he spends every hour of every day training, the chances of him mastering the Rasengan in a single week are slim to none. It wasn't a fair bet."

"Why are you so reckless?" Jiraiya asked her.

"I'm not reckless…" Tsunade answered weakly.

"You're meeting up with Orochimaru, aren't you?" Jiraiya responded, "I could tell from Shizune's facial expressions. I don't know what sort of deal he made you, but don't make a hasty decision."

"There is only one thing we need to be clear on, Tsunade." Kiyoshi took up the conversation, "The past Hokage protected all who lived in Konoha. They all ruled during troubled times, but the allowed Konoha to prosper. They bet their lives on the dreams of peace, that everything they did would come to something. Being the granddaughter, grandniece, and student to three Hokage, you should know this better than anyone. However, if you do anything to betray Konoha, I will kill you. I'm sure Jiraiya feels the same."

Jiraiya simply nodded his head in agreement.

"It has nothing to do with me." Tsunade replied as she sipped at her drink.

"Only a murderer would show no feelings knowing that people close to them are dead." Jiraiya answered, "You're not like that, right? You do care for the safety of Konoha and her residents, because…"

"Stop lecturing me already!" Tsunade shouted. "Why did you bring that brat along?"

"They look a lot alike don't they?" Jiraiya answered.

Tsunade lost herself in thoughts of her late younger brother. Nawaki and Naruto were a lot alike. They had the same dream, and the same enthusiasm. It was almost like looking at an reincarnation of her dear brother when she looked at the blond genin.

The three old comrades enjoyed the rest of their drinks in relative silence. Everything that needed to be said had been… for now.

* * *

Naruto looked out the window of his room into the night sky. "I only have a week to master the Rasengan." he said resolutely. He didn't care if Jiraiya said it should take him a few more weeks, Naruto would do it in one.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata was getting ready to offer him some words of encouragement, but was cut off at a knock at the door. She looked over to Naruto, but he shrugged.

"Come in." Naruto said as he prepared a kunai, remembering what happened the last time someone came knocking at his hotel door.

However, the figure that opened the door was not that of an enemy. It was Shizune.

"I'm sorry for coming so late. However, there's something I need to talk to you two about." Shizune said as she entered the room.

"I was just getting ready to go to bed." Naruto said, "I need my rest so I can get to work on the Rasengan tomorrow."

"I'm sorry." Shizune apologized again, "However, I don't want you to misunderstand Tsunade-sama. Also, the necklace…" Today seemed to be the day for interrupting people. Naruto rudely cut Shizune off.

"Who cares about that old lady?" Naruto half-yelled his rhetorical question.

"Tsunade-sama is nothing like you think of her!" Shizune yelled back, "Please don't talk about her as if you know her!"

Naruto was a little taken aback. Even though he didn't know Shizune well, he didn't think she was the type to get angry like that.

"I apologize for shouting." Shizune stated as she came back to her senses, "Tsunade-sama didn't use to be like this. She use to have a caring heart that loved the village, but she changed on that day…"

"What happened on 'that day'?" Hinata asked as she took a spot on one of the two beds in the room.

"Dreams, love, and hope were all lost on that day." Shizune said, "However, about the necklace, it is very precious to Tsunade-sama. It is just as important to her as her own life, and is not something to be wagered carelessly."

"How was I supposed to know that?" Naruto asked, "She was the one who put it down as a wager."

"That necklace is something neither of you should have. It is a cursed necklace, and it doesn't acknowledge anyone but Tsunade. Anyone else who has worn that necklace has died." Shizune said as she recounted the tales of Nawaki and Dan, their encounters with the cursed necklace, and their subsequent deaths.

Naruto listened to the story silently, as did Hinata. After Shizune finished Naruto made his way to the door of the room.

"Can you understand? From that day forth, Tsunade-sama has been struggling." Shizune said, but Naruto didn't say anything as he passed her up and opened the door. "Naruto?"

Finally, Naruto acknowledged her. He looked Shizune dead in the eyes, "I'm going to train." Naruto then left and shut the door behind him.

"What's up with him?" Shizune asked more to herself than to Hinata.

"You should take your own advice, Shizune-san." Hinata spoke up, "You don't know anything about him or his life. What you have told him will only make him try harder. He won't… can't back down from this. He gave his word to learn the Rasengan in a week, and his word is his bond, it is his nindo. That is my Naruto-kun."

Shizune just looked at the younger kunoichi, "So, you two are close?"

"Yes." Hinata said as a small blush crept across her face, "More so since starting on this journey, but I have… known him for some time. I don't know how, but he will find a way to master the Rasengan in the next week."

Shizune sighed. Hinata was entirely confident in Naruto, and her words and tone spoke of it. "I'm sorry, but, for everyone's sake, I hope this is one promise he can't keep. Sorry, for interrupting your evening." With that, Shizune excused herself from the room.

Hinata looked out the window Naruto had been staring out of before Shizune had came. _Whatever you do, Naruto-kun, be safe. I believe in you. _Hinata lingered a moment longer before getting up and leaving for her own room.

* * *

Naruto spent days at a small clearing plunging Rasengan at trees and boulders. Sweat dropped from his face as he worked harder than he ever had before. He had been making progress, his Rasengan was more powerful than when he first tried to use it against Tsunade. He had slept in the clearing the last couple of nights, as he had been so exhausted that he couldn't muster the energy to return to the hotel. He had ate only when he needed to.

Currently, Naruto was laying on his back, completely spent. He panted heavily, trying to catch his breath. "I know the trick. I know what I'm supposed to do, but I just can't make it work." He said to himself.

Naruto picked himself back up, he only had one more day to finish the technique. He couldn't fail, he had to prove to that old woman that he wasn't one to be taken lightly. He went through the motions one more time, pumping everything he had into making the Rasengan work. He lashed out at the tree he had been practicing on one more time.

The Rasengan connected, but it was the same as all the others. Naruto still couldn't seem to control the sphere perfectly. "Damn it… Why?" Naruto managed to say before he passed out from chakra exhaustion. He didn't even recognize the voice shouting out to him as he collapsed.

* * *

Kiyoshi was worried. Actually, that was an understatement. Kiyoshi couldn't put words to how perturbed he was. Something was clearly wrong with Tsunade, but she wouldn't talk about it.

Jiraiya was off sharing another drink with the Slug Princess, and Kiyoshi would have joined them, but he decided to take some time and think things over. Tsunade had admitted to talking to Orochimaru, and Orochimaru never did anything without a reason. If he was talking to her, then he obviously needed something healed and was trying to cut a deal with Tsunade. Tsunade had to know that if Orochimaru got what he wanted, then Konoha would be crushed to nothingness.

The bet between Tsunade and Naruto would be concluded tomorrow, even though Kiyoshi already knew what the result would be. Maybe that meant something. Tsunade wasn't dumb, she knew it was all but impossible for Naruto to learn the rest of the Rasengan in a week. Maybe there was another reason she had given him only a week.

Was it possible? Could she be meeting with Orochimaru again? Kiyoshi thought about it, and he came to his conclusion. Regardless of whatever happened, he would have to tail Tsunade tomorrow, and if she showed the slightest hint of helping Orochimaru, he would kill them both, as much as it would pain him to do so.

* * *

Naruto awoke in a bed. He was very confused. Last thing he remembered was hitting that tree with another incomplete Rasengan. He took a quick look around, and noticed that Shizune was laying on the ground at the foot of his bed. He got up and started shaking the older woman.

"Hey! Hey, get up!" Naruto said as he shook her.

Shizune returned to the realm of the living groggily. However, once she realized who she was talking to, "Naruto! What day is it?"

"Umm… Monday, why?" Naruto replied, thoroughly dumbfounded.

"You're body has recovered?" Shizune asked.

"Yeah, no matter what, I only need one day of sleep, and I can recover from anything." Naruto boasted. "Anyway, Where's the old hag? Today's the day of the bet. I haven't finished my training, but I'm sure I can figure something out."

_So I might still have time…_ Shizune thought as she got to her feet and headed to the window. "Naruto, please stay inside." She told the genin before making to jump out the window, only to be stopped by a kunai crossing in front of her face.

Shizune turned to look at who had attacked her. She was surprised when she saw who it was. "Jiraiya-sama?"

"Stop, Shizune." Jiraiya said as he leaned heavily against the wall. Shizune and Naruto went to help the Toad Sage as he slid down to a sitting position.

"Damn that Tsunade. She put something in my sake. I can't mold chakra very well, and everything is numb, I can barely hold chopsticks or throw kunai." Jiraiya informed the two of them.

Naruto pointed an accusing finger at his sensei, "You always brag about how good of a ninja you are, you lame ass."

"Shut up, squirt." Jiraiya replied angrily, "Even in her fallen state, Tsunade is still a medical specialist. She's the only ninja that can create odorless, tasteless drugs to use against other ninjas. Anyway, Shizune, what did you two talk to Orochimaru about? I think it's time you told us."

"I wanted to believe in Tsunade-sama. That's why I didn't say anything." Shizune said, "But, we don't have much time, follow me! I'll explain on the way."

Jiraiya nodded, and stood up and began to take off with Shizune.

"I'm coming too!" Naruto shouted as he took off after the two of them."

* * *

Hinata was lonely. She hadn't seen anyone all day. Kiyoshi had left early that morning before she had awoke, and neither Naruto or Jiraiya had came home last night. She hadn't seen Tsunade or Shizune either. So, Hinata had ended up eating breakfast alone and was now wondering the streets of Tanzaku, just trying to pass the time. She knew she could probably be out training in the Fuuton: Hitofuki, but something didn't feel right.

Hinata sighed, and looked up to the sky. Today was the day of Naruto's bet. She hadn't seen him in the past week, he was so focused on learning the Rasengan. She understood, though, and didn't interfere. This was important to him, and she knew it. He would just have to make it up to her later.

Hinata continued walking down the street in the commercial district, window shopping for the most part. She would have went up to the castle to look at it, but Orochimaru had squashed that idea before she had even had it.

Suddenly, Hinata caught a flash of familiar yellow out of the corner of her eye. Naruto was heading to the destroyed castle at an alarming rate. She didn't know what was going on, but she was going to follow. She was bored, anyway.

* * *

Kiyoshi was in a tree overlooking Tsunade. She was leaning up against a wall near the hole she had put into it nearly a week earlier. She was obviously waiting on someone, probably Orochimaru.

Kiyoshi's suspicions where correct as he watched his former teammate approach from the way leading to destroyed castle.

"So, what's your answer?" Orochimaru asked as he got closer to Tsunade.

Tsunade looked at the ground for a agonizing few minutes before she lifted herself from the wall and walked towards Orochimaru. "I will heal your arms, if you promise to leave Konoha alone." Tsunade said.

"Deal." Orochimaru said as he lifted his arms. Kiyoshi noticed that they were heavily bandaged. Sarutobi must've gotten in some good licks if Orochimaru needed his arms healed.

Kiyoshi watched as Tsunade created the familiar green glow of a medical jutsu. Kiyoshi sighed, he was going to have to get involved. However, before Kiyoshi could make his move, a kunai landed between the two other Yonnin and made them leap away from each other. Kiyoshi looked to see a silver-haired man with a Oto forehead protector on standing on the wall on the opposite side from Kiyoshi's tree. The Oto-nin jumped down and landed behind Orochimaru.

"What is this? To come this far and betray me, Tsunade?" Orochimaru said, full of mock hurt, "How could you come to this conclusion, to try to kill me. I guess I should thank you, Kabuto, for seeing through Tsunade's ruse."

"Yes, we are both medical nins. Her chakra was full of intent to kill, not conducive to healing." Kabuto said.

"Tsunade, I fully intended to revive those two, and I even promised not to attack Konoha." Orochimaru stated

"Orochimaru, I know that promise was a lie. But still, to see Dan and Nawaki one more time. I wanted to see them, touch them, see their smiling faces just one more time. I would finally be able to see them again, but, as soon as I felt that touch my skin, I realized that I was a damned fool. I loved them, truly loved them. I wanted to see and hug them, but I couldn't. Because of that brat, I remembered their dreams, dreams I had tried so hard to forget. The dream that they bet their lives on… having that dream come true was also my wish. All things that have shape eventually decay. You've said that. However, this feeling will never decay." Tsunade ranted as tears streamed from her eyes.

"So the deal is off, then." Orochimaru said. "No choice then, I'll have to force you to do it."

Tsunade's expression immediately hardened as she jumped into the air and delivered an axe kick that shook and cracked the ground around her, leveling the wall and some trees, including the one Kiyoshi was in.

Now it was time for Kiyoshi to make his presence felt. He launched himself out of the tree and at the nearby roof where Orochimaru was. Orochimaru and Kabuto barely had time to register the new threat before Kiyoshi was on them. Kiyoshi tried to rake out the eyes and at the throat of the Snake Lord. However he was stopped by Kabuto, who deftly parried most of his blows.

"Kiyoshi…" Orochimaru said as he lashed out with kicks at the Eagle King, "I wasn't expecting to meet you here."

Kabuto and Orochimaru quickly tried to eliminate Kiyoshi from the fight, but they didn't get the chance as Tsunade crashed through the wall in an attempt to obliterate Orochimaru.

"I think we should fall back for the moment, Kabuto." Orochimaru said.

"I told you this medicine was going to be bitter, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto said as he and Orochimaru made their retreat.

"Come back here, Orochimaru! You will not escape your fate." Tsunade yelled as she took off after them. Kiyoshi quickly followed.

* * *

Hinata managed to catch up with Naruto, Jiraiya, and Shizune. They informed her of what was going on, and the fact that Tsunade might be siding with Orochimaru. Hinata wondered where Kiyoshi was, but she had more pressing matters to worry about. For example, for all she knew, she, Naruto, Jiraiya, and Shizune could be walking into a fight with two of the four Yonnin.

Soon they landed in near the place where the battle had started. All of them looked around. Words couldn't describe the amount of destruction that had been wreaked in the immediate vicinity. Trees were toppled, the ground was cracked, and the walls were absolutely demolished.

"What is this?" Naruto asked as he looked at the damage.

"Looks like Tsunade-hime went wild…" Jiraiya said in response.

Shizune laid down a bundle that Hinata hadn't realized the older woman had been carrying. It turned out to be a pig wearing a red vest and a pearl necklace.

"Tonton, can you tell which way she went?" Shizune asked the pig.

Tonton sniffed at a jacket that was laying on the ground. Hinata looked closer to see that it was Tsunade's jacket. Tonton immediately gave an oink and took off.

They followed the pig until they came across a large clearing. They could see Tsunade and Kiyoshi facing off against Orochimaru and some silver-haired Oto-nin.

"Naruto-kun… is that…" Hinata asked as they got closer.

Naruto looked hard at the unknown Oto ninja, and he finally realized where he remembered the man from, "Yeah, that is. It's that Kabuto guy from the Chuunin Exams."

For now, it seemed Tsunade was handling Kabuto, and Kiyoshi was taking on Orochimaru. The team quickly made their way over to the fight.

Kabuto was about to land what looked like a telling blow on Tsunade when a large poof of smoke appeared and blocked his attack. Kabuto was mildly surprised when inside the smoke cloud stood the one missing Yonnin, Tsunade's assistant, and two genin that he met in the Chuunin Exams.

Kiyoshi leapt back and reunited with his student and friends. Orochimaru and Kabuto also used the brief interruption to regroup.

"Long time no see, Jiraiya." Orochimaru said.

"You haven't changed at all." Jiraiya replied with a smirk.

However, the banter was quickly stopped by Tsunade. "Move!" She yelled as she barreled through the ones in front of her and made to attack Kabuto. However, Kabuto quickly sliced open his own wrist, using Tsunade's hemophobia against her. Tsunade froze in her tracks as blood covered her, and she fell to her knees in shock. Kabuto then punched her square in the jaw, sending her flying backwards.

Shizune quickly caught Tsunade as Naruto spoke up, "Hey! What's going on, why's Kabuto fighting Tsunade?"

"My you're dense." Kabuto insulted, "That's why you'll never compare to Sasuke."

"Look at his headband." Jiraiya said, "He's one of Orochimaru's men."

"That's right." Kabuto smirked, "I'm an Oto spy."

"What are you saying? You're lying, right?" Naruto replied shakily. He didn't understand how anyone could betray their village.

"Naruto, I watched you a little in the Chuunin exams, and I have come to a conclusion. Unlike Sasuke, you have absolutely no talent in becoming a ninja." Kabuto insulted the blond genin again.

That did it for Naruto. He leveled a gaze at Kabuto that could eat the paint off a wall. However, Kabuto was not impressed.

"Even if you glare at me like that, you are nothing but an out of place genin. You have been relying on the power of that monster inside of you, but, with the legendary Yonnin before me, you are like a small bug right now. If you try something, I will kill you." Kabuto warned.

Without a though Naruto charged. Jiraiya tried to stop him, but was too weak from the drug to catch him. Kiyoshi also tried to interfere, but he was cut off by Orochimaru.

"Now, now, Kiyoshi, we should let the children have their fun." Orochimaru said as he kicked at Kiyoshi's head.

However, nothing was stopping Hinata as she rushed into battle to help her loved one. She was only a few steps behind him as they both ran towards Kabuto.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as he made three clones of himself. Naruto's clones then started their attack, but nothing went as planned. Kabuto threw blood in one clones eyes, kicked two others in the face, then threw the blinded clone into the real Naruto. This caused all three clones to disperse the real Naruto to go flying. However, the distraction and smoke caused by the attack left Hinata with a wide open shot. Kabuto realized his folly one moment too late and couldn't dodge the blow coming, so he did the next best thing. Kabuto shifted his body and made the Jyuuken strike aimed at his heart land on his left shoulder. The pain was bearable, but he was sure using that arm would be difficult for a while.

Hinata attempted to capitalize on her opening more, but she was no match for a fully aware Kabuto. In the end, she received a knee to the gut and a kick to the face as Kabuto launched her away from himself as well.

Shizune moved quickly to catch the flying Hinata. She made it in time to catch the genin, and as she moved backward she spat a couple of highly poisoned needles at Kabuto. Kabuto, again, didn't have time to dodge the sneak attack, but managed to move his head so that the poisoned needles were deflected by his headband.

Shizune sat Hinata down, letting her right herself, and watched as Kabuto pulled a pill our of his pack. Shizune recognized it as a blood clotting pill. _So he's a med-nin like me…_ During this time, Kiyoshi and Orochimaru had broken off again.

"Damn that serpent style." Kiyoshi cursed, "He's almost impossible to hit, even without his arms."

"You sure are bleeding a bunch." Orochimaru noticed as he looked at Kabuto."

"Please remove the bandages on your left arm, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto requested. Orochimaru complied.

"Kiyoshi, do you think you can handle Orochimaru?" Jiraiya asked his teammate.

"Yeah, he's sneaky. But, even snakes are known to be food for eagles." Kiyoshi stated.

"Alright, Then I'll leave Orochimaru to you. Shizune, you and I will take care of Kabuto. But, I'd like to have Tsunade do something about my condition." Jiraiya stated.

"The effects of the drug will probably last a few more hours, and there's no way to cure it." Shizune stated.

"Well, I guess I'll just have to go with what I got." Jiraiya said in acceptance.

"What about me? I want to fight!" Naruto shouted.

"No. Kabuto was right, he is way out of your league. You and Hinata stay here and guard Tsunade as she recovers. One of our opponents is a Yonnin, like me, and the other is on Obito's level.

"Then…" Naruto said as he made the sign for the Shadow Clone Jutsu.

"Stop. With those two as your enemy, Shadow Clone Jutsu is useless. Just sit back and let us take care of it." Jiraiya commanded.

"Damn it…" Naruto said as he reluctantly accepted the situation.

Kabuto used his blood to invoke the summoning jutsu of his master. Jiraiya and Kiyoshi realized where this was going and quickly used their own Kuchiyose no Jutsu. Orochimaru and Kabuto rose up on a large two-headed snake, and Kiyoshi took to the skies on the back of a slightly smaller eagle. However, all Jiraiya managed to summon was Gamakichi.

"Yo, what's up?" the diminutive toad greeted.

Naruto and Jiraiya went wide eyed at the sight of the small toad.

"I see your stupidity still hasn't been cured Jiraiya, so I will attack first." Orochimaru stated as the giant snake lunged towards the group.

"I think you're forgetting someone!" Kiyoshi yelled as the eagle he was riding let loose a terrifying war screech and dive bombed at the head of the snake carrying Orochimaru and Kabuto. However, the snake, much like his master, proved to be3 a very difficult catch, and eluded the beak and talons of Kiyoshi's eagle.

Whilst Kiyoshi and Orochimaru fought with their summons, Naruto decided to take matters into his own hands. He made the seals to invoke his contract with the toads and slammed his hand to the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu"

A large puff of smoke revealed a pudgy looking yellow toad.

"Hello." The small frog called out as he looked around.

"What are you doing here, Gamatatsu?" Gamakichi asked.

"Gamakichi-niisan!" Gamatatsu exclaimed as he hopped over to his brother, "This is my first summoning, but I'll try my hardest."

"Baka! You'll just be a snack for that snake, go hide!" Gamakichi shouted.

However, before the brothers could continue their argument, one of the heads of the giant snake plowed into the ground next to them. Everyone just barely managed to get out of the way in time. Kiyoshi's eagle could still be heard flapping its wings and letting loose war cries.

Shizune, Naruto, Hinata, Tonton, and Tsunade all landed a good ways away from the rest of the fight. Jiraiya was no where to be seen at the moment. However, that was the least of their worries. Tsunade was still catatonic, and Kabuto was approaching. Shizune took her turn to face down Kabuto while Naruto and Hinata continued to watch over Tsunade.

Shizune opened the fight with a volley of needles launched from the contraptions on her right arm. However, Kabuto easily dodged the volley and rushed in to hit Shizune with a chakra scalpel to the abdomen. Shizune was hoping for the close quarters.

"Ninpou: Dokugiri!" Shizune said as she released a small cloud of poison gas from her mouth. Shizune smiled briefly as she believed that Kabuto had been caught in her attack. However, her jubilation was short-lived as Kabuto's hands erupted from the ground and grabbed her ankles. Chakra scalpels sliced the tendons in her ankles, making it all but impossible for Shizune to stand. Kabuto then let into Shizune with a punch to the jaw, promptly knocking Tsunade's assistant out. All that stood between Kabuto and Tsunade now was Naruto and Hinata.

Hinata settled into her Jyuuken stance. Naruto prepared himself by cracking his knuckles and various other parts of his anatomy, preparing himself for a brawl.

"Time to end this!" Naruto shouted as he began to form a Rasengan. Naruto formed the spiraling sphere, but he could tell it still wasn't complete. _It will have to do…_

Naruto charged at Kabuto attempting to strike Kabuto in the chest with the Rasengan, but Kabuto was too agile, he easily dodged the strike and used his chakra scalpel to cut the muscles in Naruto's upper leg and cracking a bone.

"I cracked your right femur with that attack. It's impressive that you can still move. However, you cannot win, as you cannot stand." Kabuto said as he turned his attention to Hinata, "Two down, one to go."

Hinata braced herself she knew she was out matched, but she had to try. She would protect Tsunade with her life if she had to.

"Now, now. You know you cannot beat me. You might be the heir to the Hyuga, but you are no match for me." Kabuto said as he approached, "You should just run. This isn't a place for a genin to be."

Hinata didn't flinch. She couldn't run away, especially with Naruto there watching her. What would he think if she turned tail and ran? She wouldn't be able to live with herself.

Kabuto sighed as Hinata's resolve did not seem to waver, "Fine, have it your way. Die!"

Kabuto lunged at Hinata who dodged and blocked his blows. She knew his hands were dangerous, it was just like fighting against someone else using the Jyuuken. Block the arms not the hands and they can't hit you with the most damaging parts of their attack. However, Kabuto had the advantage in strength and speed, and Hinata could feel herself being pushed into a proverbial corner. She made a snap decision, she had to use that jutsu, even if she hadn't perfected it, it should give her enough room to begin the Eight Trigrams Thirty-two Palms.

"Kaiten!" Hinata shouted as she blasted Kabuto away. While still incomplete, the spin was still powerful enough to blow Kabuto away and give her some breathing room.

"You are in my field of divination." Hinata said as she saw a simpler version of the green array that marked the beginning of the Eight Trigrams, "Eight Trigrams Thirty-two Palms!"

Kabuto's eyes widened as Hinata became a small blur of motion. He could feel her pressing several of his tenketsu and closing them off. The experience was painful, and he cursed himself for being caught off guard. The last time he had checked on her progress she hadn't known how to do anything beyond the most basic of her familial jutsu. Kabuto had labeled her as a failure and moved on, not thinking she was worth wasting any time spying on. He regretted that decision now.

However, while the Eight Trigrams Thirty-two palms shut down most of Kabuto's chakra network, it did not shut down all of it, as the Sixty-four Palms would have done. Hinata however was near her limit. Using both the Kaiten and the Thirty-two palms, along with having her Byakugan active, had drained her of a lot of her chakra. She knew she still needed work on her chakra reserves.

Even though he was beaten, Kabuto wasn't out of the fight yet, and he took advantage of Hinata's weakened state. Mustering the strength to move, he reengaged the Hyuga heiress in a taijutsu battle. The battle was more even than Kabuto would have like, however Hinata made a terrible mistake as she aimed a blow at Kabuto's head and missed. Kabuto dodged to his right and grabbed Hinata's wrist with his left hand. Hinata's eyes widened in shock as she watched Kabuto's right arm come forward and break her arm with a sickening crack. Hinata let loose a bone chilling scream of agony before Kabuto finished up with a knee to her chin. Hinata was out cold before she hit the ground.

"Foolish girl." Kabuto said as he pulled out a kunai, "I told you to run away. For your insolence, you will die." Kabuto began to plunge the kunai into Hinata's heart, but was stopped short as the blade was caught by Naruto. He had a Shadow Clone behind him and it was forming another ball of chakra in Naruto's hand.

Naruto firmly grasped Kabuto's hand to make sure that Kabuto couldn't get away this time. "You've hurt my hime." Naruto said in almost a growl, "I only just found her, and I will not let you take her away from me! Rasengan!" Naruto plunged the completed Rasengan into Kabuto's chest, tearing away clothes and flesh. Naruto finally let go of Kabuto's hand and the Oto shinobi flew backwards for yards before finally crashing into a large boulder with a sickening thump.

Naruto smiled in triumph as Kabuto's broken body slumped against the rock. However, Naruto's victory was short lived as he spat out blood and collapsed to the ground.

Tsunade, who had watched shocked at the display of power from Naruto, finally came to her senses and rushed over to the fallen genin.

"It's too late for him. I cut off the chakra to his heart, now it's not getting any blood." Kabuto said as he too collapsed to the ground, "I've cut off any chance of him recovering from my attack."

"Shut up!" Tsunade commanded as she began her medical jutsu. All that Tsunade could think about was willing Naruto to live again as she repaired the damage to his heart. She closed her eyes as she concentrated on what needed to be done. Her eyes opened in shock as she felt a tug at her necklace and the cord that held it snapped.

"The bet…" Naruto said weakly as he forced himself up on his hands and scooted over to Hinata, placing the necklace in her hand, "… I won." With that, Naruto promptly fell into unconsciousness.

Tsunade felt tears welling inside her. This time, at least, she had stopped it. She had stopped death from claiming another one with the dream.

* * *

Kiyoshi cursed that elusive snake. In the madness of fighting the giant snake he had lost track of Orochimaru. He was currently trying to deal with both heads of the snake at the same time. He would have gladly taken some assistance at the moment.

"Doton: Swamp of the Underworld!" Kiyoshi heard the announcement. Kiyoshi silently thanked the gods that Jiraiya seemed to have gotten back into the fight. The swamp wasn't as large as the one Jiraiya usually created, but it served it's purpose.

"Now!" Kiyoshi commanded his eagle, and the eagle heeded. Almost immediately after the snake started to sink into swamp, one of the heads was caught in the eagles talons and took several gouges to the head from the eagle's beak.

Kiyoshi leapt from the back of the eagle and quickly signed for his attack. "Raiton: Lance of the Thunder God!" Kiyoshi shouted the name of his attack as he finished the signs. He held his hands out and a coil of lightning as thick as a man shot forth from Kiyoshi's outstretched palms. The lightning impacted the other head of the snake burrowing a hole into it. Both heads dropped limply after the blows and the snake poofed out of existence.

Kiyoshi thanked his summon, and quickly sent it back to its own realm with its own puff of smoke.

As the smoke cleared, Kiyoshi saw something that made his heart wrench. Orochimaru was standing above Tsunade, Kusanagi, Orochimaru's sword, lodged in between her breasts. It didn't take Kiyoshi long to see why Tsunade had taken the hit, directly behind her were the bodies of Naruto and Hinata, both unconscious.

"Tsunade." Orochimaru said, even though Kusanagi was protruding from his mouth, "I wasn't trying to kill you. If that brat survives, he could cause all manner of trouble for me. Don't get in my way."

"No." Tsunade said defiantly, "I will protect him no matter what."

"Hmph, Why do you protect that brat?" Orochimaru said a he retracted Kusanagi from Tsunade's body.

"To… protect Konoha." Tsunade said between shallow breaths, "Because, he is the future Hokage."

"What are you babbling on about." Orochimaru taunted, "Besides, the position of Hokage is worthless, only a fool would want it."

Tsunade was in shock for a few moments. Orochimaru's words mimicked her own from when she met Naruto. That brought back memories of her grandfather and granduncle, as well as her former teacher, and Jiraiya's former pupil.

"This time… I will bet my life." Tsunade said as she steeled her resolve.

"If your going to throw away your life to save a worthless brat like him, then die like the trash you are!" Orochimaru said as he made to cut Tsunade down. Tsunade couldn't make a move and received a deep gash into her right shoulder. Kiyoshi lost his breath as he watched Tsunade fall.

"Damn it." Kiyoshi said as he leapt into action. However, he wasn't going to make it as Orochimaru positioned himself over Naruto.

"Now for the Kyuubi brat." Orochimaru said as he slashed down at the defenseless blond. However, Kusanagi tasted the blood of a different blond as Tsunade again protected Naruto from the wrath of Orochimaru.

"Worthless trash!" Orochimaru shouted as he dragged his blade from Tsunade's side then kicked her over. He barely had time to notice that Tsunade had stop trembling from her hemophobia before he was rocked to the core by a super punch from Tsunade.

"You want to know why?" Tsunade said as she rose to her feet. Her wounds were starting to heal as a symbol crawled across her face that Orochimaru had never seen before. "Because I am the Godaime Hokage!"

Shizune had just returned to her wits to see the state that Tsunade was in. "Tsunade-sama, please heal your wounds. Don't use that seal!" Shizune yelled as she noticed the seal on Tsunade's face. However it was too late.

"Ninpou: Souzou Saisei!" Tsunade announced as the seal on her face glowed purple and all of her wounds immediately began closing and healing.

Orochimaru was flabbergasted, but didn't have time to ask about her new technique as Kiyoshi descended on him from behind. Serpent faced Talon once more in a stalemate. However, both of them noticed that Tsunade had wiped some of her blood off of herself as was beginning to form a very familiar set of seals.

Soon everyone disengaged and began performing the same set of seals, each using their own blood in preparation for the summon. Orochimaru using Kabuto to create the seals for him.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" each of the Yonnin yelled at the same time.

The sight was truly something to behold as each Yonnin had summoned their greatest ally. Jiraiya was atop the head of the great Gamabunta. Tsunade, Shizune, Naruto, and Hinata were all atop the head and back of Katsuyu, a giant slug. Orochimaru was atop the giant snake, Manda, a snake that put the previously summoned snake to shame. Kiyoshi summoned an even larger eagle than before. Unlike the first one however, this eagle wore a necklace made of interlocking metal rings shaped like lightning bolts, and it's feathers were brilliant, if unnatural, shades of blue and purple. Kiyoshi and the new eagle soared high above the rest.

"**Manda, Katsuyu, and Gamabunta.**" The giant eagle said in a booming voice, "**It seems as though we are having a reunion. It's been a long time since I've seen you Kiyoshi.**"

"Yes it has been a long time my old friend." Kiyoshi replied. "I'm sorry if I disturbed you, but it's time to settle old scores, Garuda."

"**I see, so I guess it's Katsuyu, Gamabunta, and I against Manda?**" Garuda inquired.

"Yes. I think it's best however if we use 'it'?" Kiyoshi suggested.

"**You sure you're aim is still good enough?**" Garuda teased.

"You know I have eyes that are almost as good as yours, Garuda." Kiyoshi said. He looked down to see the other summons and their masters exchanging words. He also watched as Tsunade had Katsuyu remove Hinata, Naruto, and Shizune from the battlefield.

"Orochimaru!" Jiraiya called out, "We have stood and watched your evil for long enough, you are no longer our comrade."

"Comrade?" Orochimaru smirked, "Don't make me laugh."

"Today is the last day we'll be known as the legendary Yonnin." Tsunade said.

_Yonnin no more…_ Kiyoshi thought sadly as he prepared to strike out at his former teammate. "It's time."

"**Yes.**" Garuda said.

Kiyoshi reached down and plucked one of Garuda's feathers, and began to funnel his chakra into the feather. Kiyoshi watched as the color turned to red, and the feather began to warp and twist itself into the form of a bow, "Bow of the Heavens!"

Kiyoshi strode over to Garuda's necklace and plucked one of the lightning bolts, at his touch it crackled to life, electricity dancing along its form.

Soon after the preparations were done, the battle began anew. Katsuyu tried to hit Manda with a spray of acid, but missed as Manda dodged and quickly wrapped himself around the slug.

Kiyoshi didn't wait for long before raining lightning bolts onto Manda. He wasn't going after the snake, but the two on his head. However, each bolt struck and the shock introduced into Manda's system force his muscles into contractions and the giant snake began to squeeze the life out of the slug. The slug quickly disintegrated into thousands of smaller slugs. After freeing themselves the slugs all began to rejoin to reform the original Katsuyu.

Gamabunta tried to take advantage of the situation and impale the large snake with his tonto, but that idea was thrown out the window when Manda caught the blade in his mouth. Manda then wrenched the blade from Gamabunta's grasp and flung it back at its original owner. Gamabunta barely moved in time to avoid being impaled by his own sword.

Kiyoshi kept up his attacks from the sky. Both he and Garuda knew this was the best place for them in this fight. Kiyoshi watched form the corner of his eye as Gamabunta and Jiraiya prepared their next attack.

"Katon! Grand Fireball Jutsu!" Jiraiya shouted as Gamabunta began to spew oil from his mouth. The result was a gigantic fireball. The blaze appeared to incinerate Manda and his summoner. Kiyoshi was forced to stop his attacks, otherwise he'd be blind firing into the flames.

Soon, the flames died down enough for them to see a crumbling, empty shell in the form of a snake.

"**He molted.**" Garuda observed as he and Kiyoshi circled in the air. However, they didn't have to wait long to see where Manda had went as large amounts of earth were churned up and Manda's tail whipped out to strike at Gamabunta. Gamabunta stopped the attack, but both of his hands were tied and Manda appeared from behind him, ready to bite the toad boss. Kiyoshi attempted to pepper Manda with enough bolts to stop his progress, but to no avail. Gamabunta's fate seemed inevitable now.

That was until, Gamabunta's blade crashed down through the top of Manda's mouth pinning the snake summon to the ground.

"Keep it shut!" Tsunade yelled from the handle of the blade. Orochimaru saw an opportunity and lashed out with his tongue at the Slug Princess. However, Orochimaru didn't count on one thing, he was now an unmoving target. Kiyoshi lined up his shot and let it fly. The lightning bolt caught Orochimaru in the left shoulder and pinned him down into Manda. As the electricity coursed through him, Orochimaru's body jerked in odd manners, and his long tongue dropped limp before reaching Tsunade.

Tsunade descended from her perch and grabbed Orochimaru's limp tongue and gave it a hard yank. Kiyoshi watched as Orochimaru's body was yanked from the bolt, which stayed buried in Manda's body, and rocket towards Tsunade. Tsunade waited for Orochimaru to get close before clobbering him with a chakra enhanced punch, only further strengthened from the insane speed at which Orochimaru had been hurtled into the punch. Orochimaru was sent flying until he smacked up against the side of his summon.

"**How dare you shame me like this. I'd rip you to pieces myself, but with this hole in my mouth I can't swallow anything.**" Manda boomed angrily, "**Until we meet again, Orochimaru, prepare yourself for death.**" With his part said, Manda dismissed himself in a large puff of smoke.

Orochimaru slowly regained his feet, and Kabuto landed beside him. Both looked like they had just been dragged through hell.

"Tsunade, even if you don't cooperate with me, there's another way to revive my arms." Orochimaru said, "I will destroy Konoha, make no mistake. Until we meet again, goodbye Tsunade, Jiraiya, Kiyoshi."

Kiyoshi attempted to hit Orochimaru and Kabuto with two more bolts, but neither hit their mark as Orochimaru sank into the ground and Kabuto disappeared in a smoke bomb.

"Damn it." Kiyoshi said as Garuda dropped low enough for Kiyoshi to safely disembark. Kiyoshi quickly leapt off of the giant eagle.

"**It was nice to work with you again, Kiyoshi.**" Garuda said.

"Likewise, Garuda. How can I repay your assistance?" Kiyoshi asked.

Garuda simply laughed, "**You know as well as I, my friend, that you never have to offer the eagles payment. Even though, gifting some of the chicks with some meals would be greatly appreciated.**"

"I will do that." Kiyoshi laughed as well. However, his countenance changed when he saw a look of sudden seriousness come over his feathered friend. "What is it, Garuda?"

"**I sense it. The next one…**" Garuda said.

Kiyoshi looked around. One of the things few knew about the eagles was that they chose their summoner, instead of summoner choosing them. They could always sense when one worthy of the companionship of the eagles was present. "Where? There's hardly anyone here. The only people here not part of a summoning contract are Shizune and… of course. Hold on, Garuda, I think I know who your next summoner is."

Garuda nodded and touched down on the ground to wait. Kiyoshi walked over to where Shizune was tending to Hinata and Naruto's injuries.

"Can you wake her?" Kiyoshi asked Shizune.

"Yes. She suffered a broken arm, but other than that she's okay. She should be coming around any moment now." Shizune stated.

A few moments later Hinata's eyes fluttered open, and she looked at the necklace that was in her left hand, "He did it?"

Kiyoshi nodded, "Yes he did, but, Hinata, I have someone you need to meet."

Hinata looked over to her love, who was still laying unconscious beside her. She looked over him for a moment before nodding and accepting Kiyoshi's help in getting to her feet.

Katsuyu and Gamabunta had already disappeared by the time Hinata had made it to her feet, so the only thing she saw was the majestic sight of Garuda. Kiyoshi and Hinata made their way over to the boss of the eagles.

"Hinata, this is Garuda, the strongest of the eagles that I summon. Garuda, this is Hinata Hyuga, my newest apprentice." Kiyoshi introduced the two.

"**Yes, she is indeed the one, Kiyoshi. Hello, my child, it is nice to meet you.**" Garuda greeted.

Hinata bowed deeply, "The pleasure is mine, Garuda-sama."

"**Ho Ho… so formal, this one. Tell me, why do you think I wished to meet you, Hinata?**" Garuda asked.

Hinata didn't have an answer, however Kiyoshi explained, "Hinata, unlike most other summons, the eagles choose their summoners. Garuda is one of the many eagles that has the ability to 'sense' a person worthy of becoming a companion of the eagles."

Hinata looked up at the giant eagle, "So, am I one of those people?"

"**You are indeed, chick. I can sense it in you. You have a great sense of justice. You stand by the weak, and dislike those who wrong others. These are the traits that are looked for in our summoners.**" Garuda explained, "**There's only one question now, do you wish to summon us? This is not something I or anyone else can force you to accept, you must do so of your own will.**"

Hinata looked at Kiyoshi, who gave her a silent nod, and she looked back at Naruto, still unconscious. Hinata didn't take long to make up her mind. "I accept, Garuda-sama."

"**Very good.**" Garuda said, "**However, the eagles work differently than other summons you may have seen. While others strictly adhere to your formalities between master and underling. The bonds of the eagles are founded on equality and companionship. When you summon us, we are not below you, yet neither are you below us. We stand on equal ground. So, please Garuda is fine, Garuda-sama just sounds weird.**"

Hinata looked up at the great bird, "I-I will do that, Garuda."

"**There's only one more thing for you to do, Hinata.**" Garuda said as he opened his beak and a scroll came forth out of it, "**You must sign the contract.**"

Kiyoshi whipped out a kunai and handed it to Hinata, "It's simple, cut open your finger or thumb and write your name on the scroll in your blood. Then, place some of your blood over each fingertip of the hand you intend to use for summoning and then press your fingerprints into the contract under your name."

Hinata nodded as she sliced open her right index finger and quickly scribed her name into the scroll under Kiyoshi's. She then pressed her finger to her right thumb and used the thumb to transfer blood to each fingertip and pressed down into the contract under her name as instructed.

"**That does it. You are now the newest summoner of the eagles, Hinata. I look forward to seeing your progress. Until next time, Kiyoshi, Hinata, take care.**" Garuda said as he swallowed the contract and disappeared.

"I'm proud of you, Hinata." Kiyoshi said, "Even Hizashi wasn't recognized by the eagles."

Hinata blushed, "Thank you, Kiyoshi-sensei." She fiddled around in her pockets, until she came across the necklace again. She didn't even remember pocketing it, but she pulled it out and gazed at it. _I knew you could do it, Naruto-kun..._ Hinata quickly tied the pendant around her neck and let it fall outside her jacket. While Kiyoshi and Hinata were dealing with Garuda, Tsunade and the rest had been having their own conversation. It had been decided that they were going back to Tanzaku to rest for a day before heading back to Konoha.

* * *

Naruto and the rest of the group were enjoying one more meal before heading back to Konoha.

"The Godaime? Really?" Naruto half-asked half-yelled, he had just been informed that Tsunade had accepted the position. "So, old hag Tsunade is going to be the Hokage?"

"Is there something wrong with that Naruto?" Jiraiya asked.

"Well if you compare her with the Sandaime, she's rough, selfish, bad with money, easily pissed off, and stupid. Are you sure she can do it?" Naruto replied honestly, blissfully unaware of the expression on Tsunade's face.

"Tsunade-sama, do you want to order something?" Shizune asked nicely, trying to diffuse the situation.

"Besides," Naruto continued, "Isn't she a 50-something-year-old hag? She's faking her youth. Someone like the Hokage shouldn't lie to everyone like that..."

"Let's take this outside, punk!" Tsunade shouted as she got up in Naruto's face.

A few minutes later, everyone was back outside the restaurant. In a scene much familiar to the one a week ago, Tsunade stood on one side of the street with Naruto on the other.

"Please, not again, Tsunade." Kiyoshi pleaded.

"Naruto-kun, remember what happened last time." Hinata pleaded as well.

However both of their pleas fell on deaf ears, again.

"I'm the Hokage, no matter what you say. I don't need to be serious with a brat like you, this is all I'll need." Tsunade said as she stuck one finger into the air, just like last time.

"Stop calling me a brat, damn it." Naruto yelled, "I'll be Hokage someday, too!" Naruto rushed headlong at Tsunade and launched a punch at her. Just like the last time, Tsunade dodged and flicked his headband off with her finger. Tsunade then made to flick him in the forehead again. Naruto grimaced and prepared to be sent flying, but the flick never came. He opened his eyes as he felt something soft touch his forehead. He was mildly shocked when he realized that Tsunade was kissing him on the forehead.

Tsunade then placed her hand on his shoulder and smiled at Naruto, "Become a good man."

Naruto returned her smile with his trademark grin, "Gotcha!"

After enjoying the meal that they had left, the group began their return trip to Konoha. With the Godaime Hokage in tow, everyone was in high spirits. After the tragedies of the final rounds of the Chuunin Exams, at least there would be something to celebrate now.

* * *

A/N

HAGARENARUTO: Thank you for pointing that out. I'll try to fix it, and make more use of my vocabulary. Also, I will try to continue to provide the quick, quality chapters you wish for.

ShadowFaux: I'm glad to see you again. I thank you for your criticism. I'll work on the comma thing. Honestly, in the sentence that you posted as an example I wasn't even aware I put a comma there. I tried to improve on this chapter.

Thanks go to the rest of you for reviewing and letting me know how much you enjoy the story. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.


	12. Chapter 12 Home

Four Man Squads

Chapter 12 - Home

"Ah, It feels good to be back home." Naruto said as he stretched. Currently, he and the rest of his traveling companions were stopped at a check in station at a gate leading into Konoha. Jiraiya and Tsunade were taking care of their check-in.

"I-I guess..." Hinata stammered her half-hearted agreement. Honestly, she would rather be back on the road. She had more fun out in the great wide open with Naruto than she ever had in the oppressive confines of the Hyuga compound since her mother died.

"Don't worry, hime." Naruto tried to cheer her up, "You've gotten much stronger since we've been gone. Your father has to take notice."

Kiyoshi shook his head slightly. Naruto had no idea what it would be like for Hinata if her clan figured out what she was training in, or who she was training under. Kiyoshi wasn't exactly a welcomed figure in the Hyuga household. He always was one of the most outspoken people about the Caged Bird Seal, and that was before he had Hizashi as a pupil. After the incident with Neji's father, it took all of Kiyoshi's self control and several other ninjas to stop the Yonnin from destroying the Hyuga compound in its entirety.

It wasn't long before Jiraiya and Tsunade had cleared things with the check-in booth and were on their way to Ninja Ops. Runners had been sent to Koharu and Homura, telling them that Tsunade was on her way. After a short walk to the center of town, the six travelers made their way up into the Hokage's personal office. It was a sad thing, most of Sarutobi's personal effects were still in the office.

Tsunade quickly sat down in the large soft leather chair behind the massive oak desk. Tsunade let loose a small smile, "He had a good taste in furniture, I'm definitely keeping the chair."

Small chuckles escaped from Kiyoshi's and Jiraiya's mouths as they each remembered fonder days with their former sensei. However, their trip into the past was short-lived as the door to the office opened to admit Homura and Koharu.

"I see your already making yourself comfortable, Tsunade." Homura said as he and Koharu stood in front of the new Hokage, "I take it this means you have accepted the position."

"Yes, I accept the title of Hokage, and all the responsibilities that it entails." Tsunade said formally.

"We are glad to hear it, Hokage-sama." Koharu said with a slight bow, "Your official coronation will be held in two days, but for all intents and purposes you are now the Godaime Hokage. The village council is meeting tomorrow, will you be attending?"

"Yes, I should meet the ring of leaders that I will be advising me while I am Hokage." Tsunade replied. "However, I hope that today is mine to get settled in."

"Of course." Homura stated, "You have all day to rearrange things as you see fit. Two chuunin are being assigned to you as assistants, they will help you in any way you see fit."

"One more thing." Koharu said as she turned her attention away from the new Hokage and towards the original team sent on the retrieval mission, "It was decided that this was to be classified as an A-rank mission. You will be compensated accordingly. Congratulations on a job well done."

"Thank you, Koharu-sama." Hinata replied with a bow. Naruto, fighting his natural urges to brag and make himself noticed, quietly bowed along with Hinata in acceptance of the praise.

"If you have no use for us, Hokage-sama, we shall be on our way." Homura stated.

"Of course, thank you for coming. You may go." Tsunade answered. At that, Homura and Koharu bowed and excused themselves from the room.

Tsunade relaxed as she got acquainted with her new office. "Godaime Hokage... it's still kinda hard to believe."

"Maybe, but you were the best choice out of the three of us." Kiyoshi said earnestly. "I couldn't imagine seeing Jiraiya as Hokage. He'd probably order all the women to go around topless or something else ridiculous. I might have been able to do it, but there's the whole thing with the Hyuga. They would not be pleased."

Before Jiraiya could respond to his old friend, a knock sounded through the door.

Tsunade sighed, it was already starting, "Come in."

The door opened to admit a man with long black hair and flowing white robes. He also had a very familiar set of lavender eyes, "I'm sorry for seeing you so soon after you got back, Hokage-sama. However, I wished to speak with you before things got too busy."

Hinata literally froze. What was her father doing here?

"It's fine, Hiashi. What is it that's so important that it can't wait for a couple of days?" Tsunade asked.

"I wish to inquire about adopting a child." Hiashi answered honestly.

_What? _Hinata thought, _Who is he adopting and why?_

Kiyoshi was doing his best to keep his anger in check. He was trying to give the Hyugas a second chance, but in front of him stood the reason why Hizashi had to die, and why his newest student was a introvert with no confidence in herself.

"May I ask whom and why?" Tsunade said evenly. She was already settling into the role of Hokage, not letting her emotions get the better of her easily. "I've never heard of anyone from the Hyuga clan adopting for any reason."

Hiashi spared a look to Naruto, "I'm requesting to adopt Naruto Uzumaki. The reason is that I made a promise to the Yondaime some years ago. I promised to give the boy a home, and, sadly, I've shirked my promise to my old friend."

Before Tsunade or anyone else could say anything Naruto exploded, "What makes you think I would want to live with you? I used to think I had it bad without a family, but when Hinata-hime told me about what you and your damn clan has put her through, I figured maybe my life wasn't so bad! What's the real reason you want me? You just want to have an all day pass to beat the hell out of the 'demon child' as you see fit? Well, screw you!"

_So she's told him... _Hiashi looked painfully over to his daughter, the one he had wronged in so many ways. He noticed that her hand had found Naruto's, or the other way around. He took a step over to his daughter, only to be surprised when Naruto positioned himself in front of Hinata, willing to take whatever came to protect her. Hiashi sighed, "I wish I had words to say, Hinata. Some way to take back all those years and start over new. I never told anyone about it, but when your mother, Hikari, died I think I died too. It's taken me this long to see the absolute ass, for lack of a better word, I had become. I became cold, distant, and only cared about the strength of the clan. I forgot about what was important, I forgot about my family. I callously threw away everything that Minato, Kushina, and Hikari had taught me. However, all I can say is that I'm sorry, Hinata. I'm sorry for all those years of hurt. All the insults, the uncaring attitude, and the... beatings. I can only hope you have it in your heart to give me a second chance as your father, but I can also understand if you don't want anything to do with me."

Hinata was on the verge of tears. She might not be as good at reading body language as the rest of her clan, but, as far as she could tell, he was telling the truth. She was torn, part of her wanted to scream and curse him for all the things he had put her through, but the other wanted nothing more than to have her father back, the man he had been before her mother passed.

Naruto turned around to look at Hinata. He could tell she was on the cusp of breaking down. "Are you okay, hime?" It was a dumb question he knew, but it was the only thing he knew to say.

Hinata looked up into Naruto's deep blue eyes, hoping to find an answer in them. _What would Naruto-kun do?_ Hinata asked herself. She knew her answer already. Even though he could be short-tempered and hasty, he had a big heart. She knew he'd give Hiashi a second chance. Hinata composed herself, "F-father... I will never forget the things you've done to me." Hiashi's face fell at Hinata's words, "But, I can forgive and we can try again. I would love to have my father back."

Hiashi smiled as he stepped forward, and this time Naruto didn't impede his path. He knelt down and did something that he had not done in a long, long time. He hugged his daughter.

Hinata returned her father's embrace, tears flowing freely down her face. She had never dreamed that she would see this day.

"Ahem..." Tsunade cleared her throat to gain everyone's attention, "We still have the matter of an adoption to settle, however it seems that Naruto doesn't want to be adopted..."

"Wait... I... uh..." Naruto looked around. Hiashi looked at him in approval, Hinata nodded her head letting him know what she thought. Jiraiya had a smile on his face. Even Kiyoshi seemed to approve from the way he was looking at the scene. Truthfully, Kiyoshi was fairly certain that he had just watched hell freeze over. He had just watched a Hyuga, the head Hyuga, offer a heartfelt apology, pride be damned. Kiyoshi was going to go play the lottery as soon as he got out of here.

Naruto couldn't find the words he wanted to say, "I...I...uh... I accept, I'd like to finally have a family." Naruto then turned to Hiashi, "Thank you, Hiashi-sama."

"No need for that, Naruto." Hiashi chuckled, "You can call me father, or dad."

"Well, it's not official yet. I'll have to get the paperwork drawn up, but for now you have the Hokage's blessing. I assume Naruto will be moving into the Hyuga estates?" Tsunade interrupted.

Hiashi nodded his head as an affirmative.

"Very well then, I'll have someone swing by to help move his things over to the Hyuga compound. Oh, and one word of warning, if I hear that you intentionally harmed one hair on that brat's head, I will punch you into next year. If that's all Hiashi, I'd like get some real time to get situated before things really get hectic." Tsunade said.

Hiashi replied quickly, "Yes, that is all."

"Good, now if everyone except for Shizune would please leave, I have a office to plan redecorations for." Tsunade a said as she shooed everyone out of the room.

* * *

Hiashi, Hinata, and Naruto were making their way towards Naruto's old apartment. Naruto was going to pick up some essentials to take to his new home. Hiashi decided to use this time to get to know both his daughter and his new son a little more, starting with the most important question.

"When did you two start dating?" Hiashi asked rather bluntly. Naruto and Hinata both blanched and stopped in their tracks, looking fearfully at each other and at him. Hiashi realized that they were afraid of what he might say about their relationship, "I am not blind, I saw the way Naruto protected you, Hinata. I saw the hand holding, as well. Also, I am not a fool, I know how to put two and two together."

"Well, uh. It's been around two weeks." Naruto responded, "It happened while we were on our way to the first town that we stayed in."

"What happened?" Hiashi asked, he was genuinely interested.

Naruto and Hinata looked at each other, silently trying to figure out how much they should say. Hiashi quickly interrupted the silent exchange, "I want to know all of it."

Naruto shrugged and Hinata nodded. Naruto was the one to begin the story, "Well, I woke up in the middle of the night while we were camped out on the road. I had to, um, relieve myself... Anyway, I walked out a little ways into the forest to do my thing, and that's when I heard the voice of a beautiful angel singing one of the saddest songs I think I had ever heard. I had to go check it out, I eventually found Hinata sitting beside a nearby creek, she was the one singing."

Hiashi looked over to his oldest daughter quizzically. _She can sing?_

Hinata picked up the story, "I thought I was alone, and a few days earlier I had one of my... training sessions with you, father." Hiashi winced at the use of the term "training session". He remembered full well what happened, it was just another beating. "Anyway, I had a lot of emotions going through my mind at the time, so I went out to try and clear my head. Anyway, after I had finished singing, Naruto showed up and tried to comfort me. I confided a lot to him that night. I told him about everything that happened at home."

Hiashi couldn't do anything except look at her with sadness in his eyes. He knew all about the pain she had went through, because he was the one who caused it.

Naruto again took up the story, "After that I told her I was sorry that I was never there."

"I told him that it wasn't his fault. I was so shy that I never tried to make friends." Hinata chimed in.

"And then I told her about how everyone always looks at me with hate, because of the Kyuubi. She was the only one who never looked at me like that, and I was always afraid of losing that look. So I never tried to talk to her, for fear of losing that look. And then I asked her what it was when she looked at me." Naruto continued.

"Then, I told him that I loved him, and that's what was in that look." Hinata said, a smile creeping up her lips. Hiashi looked over to Naruto, to see he was smiling as well.

"I had never known love before." Naruto said, 'I didn't know what it was."

"So I told him I'd show him." Hinata added. "We ended up accidentally spending the night in the forest. I was so drained that after a while I fell asleep in his arms."

"I didn't want to disturb her, so I went to sleep as well." Naruto said, "Anyway, when we woke up in the morning, I asked her what she meant by showing me love and threw out the idea of us dating, and she accepted."

Hiashi wrapped his head around the story. So his daughter was in love with the son of his best friend, heir to the Namikaze clan, and the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. All in all, she could do worse. She could be dating an Inuzuka, they always smelled of dog, or an Aburame. Hiashi would never admit it, but the bug users had always creeped him out. "So you love him." Hiashi stated, and Hinata nodded fiercely, as to leave no doubt in her or his mind that she did love Naruto with all of her heart.

Hiashi turned to Naruto, "Then what about you, do you love my daughter?"

Naruto looked at Hiashi dead in the eye, "I wasn't sure at the time, because I didn't truly know what love was. Now, though, I do. I love her more than anything. I'd face down the gods themselves to protect her, and I'd never to anything to hurt her. She means more to me than my own life."

Hiashi smiled at the boy. Hiashi remembered feeling about Hikari the same way. "So, aside from your budding romance, what else did you two do?"

"I trained under ero-sennin. He taught me the Rasengan, and Hinata's on the second stage of the training. Hinata's new sensei was really cool too, she even got to sign the summoning contract with the eagles." Naruto said happily. He was so caught up in what he was saying that he didn't even see Hinata trying to shush him.

Hiashi stared wide-eyed at his daughter, "You're training under Kiyoshi?"

Hinata nodded meekly.

"That's great for you." Hiashi stated, "However, if the council finds out they will not be pleased. We will have to keep this between us."

"Father?" Hinata asked confused. She was worried he would be angry for her learning from the man that was basically talked about as though he was a demon inside her home.

"I'm not angry, Hinata, if that is what you're worried about. I know Kiyoshi, he is a good man. He was a good sensei to Hizashi, and he will be a good one for you too. However, you know about how some of the elders and other main family members regard him. It would be wise not to let on that you are training under him. The branch family members adore him, for he fights for their freedom. However, don't tell anyone that you don't absolutely trust. If word of this gets back to the elders, bad things could happen."

"What kind of bad things?" Naruto asked.

"There are a number of things. She could be delegated to a branch family and marked with the Caged Bird Seal, that's one of the worst. She could be stripped of her title as heir. The least they would do is order her to cut off her training, and the most would be to excommunicate her from the clan entirely." Hiashi informed Naruto.

"How could they do that? How can you all do this to your own family?" Naruto asked.

"They believe it to be for the greater good of the clan, Naruto. They believe that the only way to strengthen the clan is to focus on that which makes our clan special, our Byakugan and our Jyuuken taijutsu. Foolishly, I agreed with them, and our clan focused on nothing but our own skills. After a while, I noticed that we weren't improving all that much. I suspect that we can become stronger with help from outside sources, but ours is a proud clan. The elders scoff at seeking help from outsiders in anything, believing that the Hyuga should be the greatest in everything. So we have shut ourselves off from the rest of Konoha, and I think we are paying a price for it. We have fewer of our members achieving jonin than ever. As a matter of fact, out of those Hyuga that haven't attained the rank, I think the only one capable of achieving jonin status without any outside help is Neji. More to the point, they will do anything and everything in their power to make sure that the Hyuga clan stays safe from 'outsiders'." Hiashi explained.

"Then what about me? I'm definitely an outsider." Naruto said, "How do I fit in?"

"Oh, they were most displeased when I talked to them about my plans to adopt you. However, like I said, we are a proud clan, and once I brought up the fact that I promised the Yondaime that I would look after you, and that it would bring shame on me and the clan if I was to disregard that promise anymore, the elders begrudgingly accepted my request."

"Another question." Naruto said.

"Go ahead." Hiashi replied.

"Why do you have to answer to these elders, aren't you the Clan Head? Shouldn't you have control?" Naruto asked.

"I do have control. However, in order to protect the clan from an inept head or one that was corrupt, the council was formed. They only have real power if they stand unanimous. As long as they all stand together, they can overrule the Clan Head or even make their own decisions." Hiashi explained.

Naruto looked as if he understood. It didn't really matter, he would learn about it in time anyway. Soon after the discussion, They arrived at Naruto's apartment. Naruto quickly took Hinata up the stairs for her first and last look inside his former home. Hiashi waited quietly outside as he waited for them to return. Around fifteen minutes later, Naruto returned with a backpack and a duffle bag each stuffed to the seams.

"You didn't have to get so much, Naruto-kun." Hinata said as they rejoined her... no, their father.

"I know, but I didn't want to leave it all for others to do, so I figured I'd at least carry my own weight." Naruto said with a smile.

"Admirable." Hiashi said, "Do you want any help?"

"Nah, I'm good." Naruto replied. "Thanks for the offer."

Hiashi, Hinata, and Naruto continued their journey to the Hyuga compound. The conversation continued to be a question and answer session as Hiashi got to know the newest member of his family, and one that he had always ignored.

* * *

Tsunade thumped her head against the desk. Her unofficial first day as Hokage was not as peaceful as she would have liked. First there was the adoption thing with Hiashi, then right after that, Might Guy came and politely, if a little forcefully, asked Tsunade to check on his prized student, Rock Lee. She inspected the young genin and found that bone shards had managed to imbed themselves in his spinal column. Any sort of strenuous action could cause those shards to slice his spinal cord, at best leaving him temporarily paralyzed and at worst killing him. Tsunade told the young man the only thing she could, he should quit being a shinobi. However, that wasn't the answer that Might Guy was looking for, and the green-clad jonin turned on her, calling her an imposter or some other such nonsense. She informed the duo that she could try to operate on the injury, but the success rate was only fifty percent, and if the surgery failed, Lee would die. Soon afterwards she left the two to their own devices and checked up on two more patients she knew she needed to help.

Kakashi Hatake had suffered extensive mental trauma. However, the leader of ANBU was strong willed and it was easy enough to bring him out of his coma. He would be bed-ridden for a week or so, but otherwise he would be fine.

Sasuke Uchiha was the last patient she visited. He was in a similar mental condition to Kakashi, but it seemed to be more severe. She had been told who had done this, and she could imagine what sort of things Itachi had caused Sasuke to endure to induce this sort of mental breakdown. It took a couple of hours but, Tsunade finally managed to resuscitate the young Uchiha heir. Like Kakashi, it would take Sasuke around a week before he could move around freely again. The girl watching him, Sakura, was delighted to see her crush back amongst the living. However, as Tsunade left Sakura stopped her in the hallway.

Apparently, the young girl was a medic nin in her own right. She had been learning from Rin Uchiha. Tsunade knew Rin professionally, and knew that Obito's wife was a good medical ninja, possibly one of the best outside of herself and Shizune. The thing that surprised Tsunade the most though was when Sakura had asked her to take the pinkette on as an apprentice. Tsunade wasn't sure if she really wanted to take on a student what with being the Hokage and all, but if this girl showed as much promise as her teammates, she could potentially craft the next great med-nin. She had told Sakura to finish her tutelage under Rin and then come to her, and that they'd see where to go from there.

After checking on her three patients, Tsunade returned to the Hokage's office, determined to finish her plans on what to do with the office. She had already decided to keep the chair and the desk, but not much else. Tsunade and Shizune finally sat down to discuss their plans when a knock came from the door. That's when Tsunade decided that head butting the desk would be a good idea.

"Oww..." Tsunade said through her desk. She picked her head up and rubbed the spot that had impacted the desk. "Come in."

Three people entered through the door, one she recognized as the head of ANBU's Torture and Interrogation unit; one was a kunoichi with purple hair, see-through mesh clothing, and a trench coat and miniskirt that barely covered her naughty bits; and the last was a man that had his forehead protector on backwards and was chewing on a toothpick, or was it a senbon.

"Forgive the intrusion, Hokage-sama," the head of Torture and Interrogation said, "However, we were hoping that you would be able to look over the results of the Chuunin Exams. While several believe no one should pass this time, most of the proctors, including myself, Anko, and Genma here, believe there were a couple of contestants that showed the qualities of a chuunin."

Tsunade finally placed the man's name, it was Ibiki. "I see, I will take a look at them. May I ask who you thought deserves promotion?"

"Of course, I believe that the Nara and the Aburame each proved that they are ready for the responsibilities of chuunin." Ibiki stated.

"How about you?" Tsunade said turning her attention to Anko.

"Well, those two did pretty good. I also liked that Uzumaki brat, he's got some spunk, even if he didn't get to compete in the last round." Anko replied.

"And, you?" Tsunade asked Genma.

"Shikamaru and Shino definitely showed promise. Also, Shiroi Wangetsu showed superb skills, I believe he is ready."

Tsunade nodded wordlessly and looked at the files Ibiki handed her. Inside was detailed reports of each finals contestant's abilities and evaluations written by various judges. "I will need to review these evaluations, and reach my own conclusion. If there is nothing else, you may leave."

Each of the proctors bowed and then left from the room. As soon as they were gone, Tsunade tossed the files aside on the desk and returned to plotting.

"Shouldn't you read those, Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked.

"Eh, they can wait." Tsunade replied.

"With all due respect, Tsunade-sama, you shouldn't shirk your duties." Shizune chided.

Tsunade shot an annoyed glare at the younger woman. However, Tsunade knew Shizune was right. Tsunade sighed, "Alright, let's take a look at these evaluations."

* * *

Naruto was impressed, very impressed. The mansion that housed the Clan Head and his family was massive. Naruto saw several rooms that were as large as his apartment, if not bigger. Naruto wanted to go run around and explore, but Hiashi stopped him before he was able.

"We need to talk some more in private." Hiashi told him. "If you two wouldn't mind accompanying me to the study, we shall discuss what needs to be discussed, then you may explore to your heart's content."

Naruto nodded and followed Hiashi alongside Hinata. The halls of the place were labyrinthine, Naruto was sure it was going to take him weeks, if not months, to memorize the layout of the mansion. Quickly, Hiashi led them to the study, opened the door, allowed them in, then shut the door closed behind them. Naruto and Hinata knelt on cushions on the floor while Hiashi sat behind his desk.

"Now, just so you know Naruto, adjusting to the life you'll have to live as a Hyuga will more than likely be difficult for you. I'm going to tell you know that even though you are not of Hyuga blood, you will be expected to behave as a Hyuga would. As the elders see it, your dishonor would be ours as well. As you may or may not know, the Hyuga clan is a very powerful and influential clan. We do a lot of diplomatic work for the Land of Fire and Konoha. In diplomatic circles, anything can be conceived as a slight, from a wrong look to a refusal to show proper etiquette. Some call this the Game of Houses or the Game of Clans, and it's a very important part of being a Hyuga. Hinata, Hanabi, and even Neji have all been trained in this since the day they were born. We are going to have to give you a crash course in it, and hope that you can assimilate enough information so that you do not dishonor the clan." Hiashi explained

Naruto opened his mouth to say something, however with a raised hand Hiashi stopped him.

"I know you don't care about the clan's honor Naruto. I can't blame you, it's not your clan. But, it will be when I adopt you, and it is Hinata's clan as well. If we do this, anything you do to bring shame on yourself also brings shame on to her and to me." Hiashi said, "It's not exactly a fair thing, I know, but it is the way things work. Do you understand this?"

Naruto nodded his head.

"Good." Hiashi continued, "The reason we are going to have to give you a crash course in manners and etiquette is that one week after your official adoption, you are going to be having a 'coming out' party of sorts."

"A coming out party?" Naruto asked, "What are you talking about?"

Hiashi elaborated, "Normally, it happens whenever a child of the main family becomes three. On their birthday, all the members of the clan, and several important dignitaries are invited to the Hyuga estates to see the child. It's a rite of passage of sorts. It shows that the child now knows how to act around others, both peers and superiors, and can be proper. Yours, however, is a special case. You are the first person ever to be adopted by the Hyuga clan, and therefore, we have never dealt with your situation before. Personally, I wanted to wait until your next birthday before having the party, that would have given us a few months to prepare you, but the council was adamant that the ceremony be held as soon as possible. It will take exactly a week for the invitations to be sent out and for all the dignitaries to arrive, so we have that long to prepare you for the rite."

"So, what happens if I fail?" Naruto asked.

"Then you shame me and my family, and the repercussions for you will not be good. Most likely, the council will ask you to leave the clan. In fact, given what's generally thought about you, the elders are planning on this. They do not want you here, and this is the easiest way to get rid of you." Hiashi said.

Naruto frowned, "They don't even know me. Why does everyone keep jumping to conclusions about me? I know I hold the Kyuubi, but that doesn't mean I am the Kyuubi."

"I know that Naruto." Hiashi said, "I believed in the Yondaime, and I know that he wanted you to be seen as the hero you are for jailing the Kyuubi. However, not everyone shares our ideas, and some are still afraid of the demon. This is your chance to prove them wrong."

"Yeah." Naruto replied, "I'll do whatever it takes. I'll show those bastards that I'm not the demon they think I am."

"Glad to hear it. Your first lesson is this, Naruto. Hyuga do not curse." Hiashi said, "While it's fine if you are alone or among people you trust not to tell the council. You must never curse. It is thought of as something only barbarians and commoners do."

"Hai, father." Naruto said. Hiashi smirked, Naruto took quickly to calling him that. Hiashi could only imagine what it was like without any family. He was sure that Naruto had always wanted one, and here it was presented to him. Naruto would fight tooth and nail to keep his newfound family.

"Good." Hiashi replied, "Now we have to train you in everything else. From proper dinner etiquette to how to greet those who are, or at least consider themselves to be, your superior. We have to mold you into the perfect gentleman."

"So, what is the plan, dad?" Naruto asked.

"I'm giving you to Hinata." Hiashi stated simply. Hinata looked at her father wide-eyed, and Naruto looked over at Hinata. Naruto already loved the idea, it meant a lot more time with Hinata, and he always liked that.

"W-why me?" Hinata asked.

"The reason is simple, my daughter. You were always the best at this sort of thing. In all the times you have attended one of these functions or anything similar, you have never said anything out of line, never offended anybody, and were always polite and well-mannered. Truthfully, in this regard, you are the best among the Hyuga." Hiashi said.

"So you want me to be more like Hinata?" Naruto asked.

Hiashi nodded in affirmation.

Naruto couldn't resist the perfect opportunity to tease his girlfriend. He placed his forefingers together in a position familiar to anyone who knew Hinata, and stuttered, "I-I t-think I c-can do that."

Hinata whipped her head around to stare daggers at her boyfriend. She knew he was teasing. However, that didn't mean she was going to take it lying down. "I accept, father." Hinata stated with newfound confidence, "You will meet me in the dining room in one hour." Hinata pointed her finger at Naruto, "We have much to go over, and you have a lot to learn. It will not be easy. May I be excused, father?"

Hiashi nodded, and Hinata promptly stood up and strode out the door. Naruto looked at her dumbfounded.

Hiashi stifled a laugh, "My child, I believe you have made things infinitely worse for yourself, at least for today. Next time, I advise thinking a little ahead before you do something rash. You have an hour to yourself, at least. Come, I will show you to your room."

Hiashi stood. Naruto quickly got up as well and followed his new father to his new room. _It's going to be an interesting week..._

_

* * *

_

Tsunade looked over the two people in front of her. Hiashi Hyuga exuded calm and serenity, it was typical for the man. However, seeing a similar state from Naruto Uzumaki was slightly disturbing to her. Tsunade was fingering the adoption papers that had just been drawn up. It had been two days since Hiashi had asked her about adopting Naruto.

"The official papers are drawn up." Tsunade stated as she looked over the adoption papers that she held in her hands. "Once we sign these, Naruto will officially be in your care, Hiashi. I'm going to ask this one more time, are you both sure this is what you want?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Hiashi stated simply.

"I have just one question, Hokage-sama." Naruto said. Tsunade couldn't believe it, the boy was actually being respectful, it just didn't seem right.

"What is it, Naruto?" Tsunade asked.

"No offense to you, father, but do I have to change my name to Hyuga if I accept this?" Naruto asked.

"Only if you want to, Naruto." Tsunade answered. Naruto let out a large sigh of relief.

"What's wrong with the name Hyuga?" Hiashi asked.

"There's nothing wrong with it." Naruto answered defensively, "It's just that it doesn't sound good with my name. Naruto Hyuga? It just sounds off."

Hiashi pondered this for a moment, "Yes, I believe you are right. Naruto Hyuga doesn't have a 'ring to it,' so to speak."

"Is that all you wanted to ask, Naruto?" Tsunade inquired.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Naruto answered.

"Then we each need to sign these forms." Tsunade said as she distributed the papers and pens so Naruto and Hiashi could sign while she did. After a few moments of passing papers, everything was in order and all the documents were signed and dated.

"Congratulations, Naruto. You are now officially a member of the Hyuga clan." Tsunade said, hoping that the kid would let out some of his usual energy.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." Naruto replied calmly as he bowed slightly.

"Okay, that's it." Tsunade said. She was fed up with this kid. Where was the Naruto that she had come to care about? Had just two days in the Hyuga household really changed him this much? "Who in the hell are you, and what have you done is the real Naruto?"

Naruto just looked back and forth from Hiashi to Tsunade, wide-eyed. "I'm sorry, Hokage-sama. What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean, damn you! The Naruto I know would have called me an old woman or grandma at least three times by now. But you have been nothing but polite, courteous, and respectful. Where's the kid that challenged me in Tanzaku, that mastered the Rasengan in a week, and boasted about it all the way beck to Konoha?" Tsunade asked forcefully.

Hiashi was the one to answer her, "That Naruto is still before you. However, we are using this meeting as a practice of sorts, Hokage-sama."

"Explain." Tsunade commanded.

"Naruto, as a new member of the Hyuga clan, has to undergo a rite of passage in the Hyuga clan. As you know, we are some of Konoha's best diplomats and negotiators, and etiquette and manners are very important to us. As such, every main family child has a coming out party at the age of 3. This is done to show the elders of the clan that the child can handle his or herself properly in front of foreign dignitaries and other such people. Naruto is now a special case, as no one from the Hyuga clan has adopted before. The elder council felt it prudent that Naruto prove himself in the same way as any other Hyuga. However, instead of the year or so of training that the other Hyuga children get in these matters, Naruto has been given a little over a week. Now that the papers are signed and he is officially part of the Hyuga clan, invitations will be sent out to everyone, and the ceremony will take place a week from today. Of course, you are invited as well, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade stared blankly at the Hyuga clan head, "What happens if he fails this 'rite of passage'?"

"More than likely, he'll be excommunicated from the clan." Hiashi said.

"Why didn't you wait, then? Train him in these things, then adopt him?" Tsunade asked incredulously.

"As soon as I told the elders of my decision. They were adamant that I fulfill my promise to Minato as soon as possible. To 'save the clan from any further disgrace' they put it. However, I know that they are using this as a means to try and prevent Naruto from becoming a member of the clan. I told Naruto of this the day I took him home. He believes that he can do it, and so do I." Hiashi explained.

Naruto looked over to Hiashi, a pleading look in his eye. Hiashi nodded at the boy.

"Don't worry, Grandma Tsunade. I'm going to knock the socks off these elders. I promise." Naruto said with his usual exuberance as he flashed her his trademark smile and gave a thumbs up.

"You promise? If so, then you can't fail, right?" Tsunade asked.

"Right!" Naruto exclaimed, "I'll keep my word, because that's my nindo!"

"Alright, kid, I believe in you." Tsunade said, "Now, get out. I'm sure you have tons more to learn."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Naruto replied, perfectly civilized.

Hiashi nodded his approval of the young man, gave one final bow to Tsunade, and then left with Naruto in tow.

However, Tsunade's day was not done. Shizune quickly entered the office.

"Tsunade-sama. Shikamaru and Shikaku Nara and Shino and Shibi Aburame are here." Shizune said.

"Send them in." Tsunade said.

"Hello, Hokage-sama." Shikaku said lazily.

"Good morning, Hokage-sama." Shibi said at almost the same time.

"Welcome." Tsunade greeted, "Have a seat."

Tsunade waited for the four men to do as they were told. The two Nara slumped in their chairs, looking like they wanted to be anywhere else. Both of the Aburame sat up straight and dignified, awaiting whatever it was that Tsunade had to say.

"I assume you all know the reason why you are here." Tsunade said. In response, all four men nodded. "Good, then I'll make this short. I have to start getting ready for the coronation ceremony soon. Shikamaru Nara and Shino Aburame, I have reviewed the reports and evaluations of all the proctors and judges of the last chuunin exam. I have found that of all the participants from Konoha, you two showed the qualities needed to be chuunin. Therefore, I am promoting you both to the rank of chuunin, effective immediately. Are there any questions?"

No one said anything. Shikamaru looked slightly annoyed, but that was it.

"Then, congratulations on your promotions. I wish you the best of luck in the future. You are dismissed." Tsunade said. The four men got up and walked back out the door to the office. Tsunade could swear she heard one of the Nara, probably Shikamaru, say something about promotions being troublesome, but she couldn't be sure.

"Shizune!" Tsunade called out of her office.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama." Shizune replied as she ducked her head into the office.

"I'm not to be disturbed, I have to prepare for the coronation. Tell anyone looking for an audience to come back tomorrow." Tsunade said.

"Yes, ma'am." Shizune answered as she ducked back out of the office.

* * *

Naruto was walking back home with Hiashi. He was happy. From what he could tell, he had done everything to near perfection. It took a lot of self-control, but Naruto knew he could do all this formal stuff.

"You did well, Naruto." Hiashi complimented as they walked down the street, "Hinata is teaching you well it seems."

"Yeah, she's a slave driver." Naruto replied, "She drills it into my head, and doesn't let me do anything until I get whatever she's teaching right. I think she's still mad about me making fun of her the other day..."

Hiashi chuckled, "I'm sure that's not the case, Naruto. My daughter cares deeply for you, that much I can tell. I think the reason she is driving you so hard is that she doesn't want to lose you. I think she wants you to succeed more than you do."

Naruto grinned up at his adoptive father, "Yeah, I'm sure you're right, dad. I'm just glad she's training with Kiyoshi today. I get to take a little breather."

"You think so?" Hiashi said as he reached into his robe and pulled out a paper, "She left me instructions on what you have done, things you need to work on, and things you have yet to start learning. My son, you're training is not done yet."

Naruto looked at the paper, it was definitely Hinata's handwriting, and looked into Hiashi's eyes. He did his best to put on those almost-tearful puppy dog eyes, "Please, father. Just a little bit of time to relax, please."

"I'm sorry, Naruto." Hiashi said, "But after seeing that side of Hinata that she showed the other day, I don't think I want to cross her. So training it is." Naruto looked down at the ground dejectedly. "However, if we hurry, I'm sure you can master this list in time to have some time to hang out or whatever." Hiashi added as he walked on ahead of his new son.

"You think so?" Naruto said, his spirits instantly raised.

"I know so." Hiashi replied, as smile gracing his lips. With that, Hiashi and Naruto quickly made their way back home. Neither of them realized, or cared if they did, the looks of the villagers. Some were amazed that the Head of the Hyuga Clan would be seen with the demon child, and others were amazed to hear the usually cold clan head laughing and smiling with the blonde. However, what had caught everyone completely off guard were two simple words, dad and son.

* * *

Hinata stood in front of Kiyoshi, awaiting whatever training he had planned for the day. She had been training on her own, in between lessons with Naruto, since they had gotten back to Konoha. She had almost mastered the Fuuton: Hitofuki and had told Kiyoshi as much.

"So, Hinata, how are things at home now?" Kiyoshi asked.

"Um... Everything is fine, Kiyoshi-sensei." Hinata replied, "In fact, it's better than ever, really. Father actually seems to care about Hanabi and I now, and he's taken well to Naruto. Naruto and I get to spend more time together than ever before, so I'm happy. Why do you ask, sensei?"

"I'm sorry for being nosy, Hinata. I just don't completely trust, Hiashi, or anyone else from the main family. Except for you, of course." Kiyoshi replied, "I also heard about Naruto's party, wish him the best of luck for me."

Hinata nodded, "I'll do that."

"Alright then, I guess we should get on to actual training." Kiyoshi said. "You signed the Eagle contract a couple of days ago, and because of that there's a jutsu and a brand new skill I need to teach you."

"I assume the jutsu is the Kuchiyose no Jutsu." Hinata replied, "But what's the skill?"

"You are correct, I need to teach you the Kuchiyose no Jutsu. The skill you need to learn is one of great importance." Kiyoshi reached out to a bag behind him and pulled out a simple longbow. "From the back of an eagle, it is much easier to attack from afar and on high, than up close and personal. Archery is the perfect skill for fighting from this situation. Using your height and gravity to your advantage, you can attack from places that your opponent can't reach you from. Also, chakra-enhanced arrows can be devastating. For instance, a wind chakra arrow can pierce through almost any armor and can cleanly pass through a human, and lightning chakra arrows can cause involuntary contractions and damage to your opponents muscles and nervous system, temporarily immobilizing them. It's a useful long range attack. First though, let's work on your summoning."

Kiyoshi showed Hinata the signs while explaining the details, "Remember, you have to have your own blood ready as an offering for the summoning. Also, the eagle you summon is directly affected by how much chakra you put into the jutsu. You don't have anywhere near the chakra supply to summon Garuda or many of the larger eagles, but I'm not expecting that. For right now, I want you to focus on trying to summon a normal-sized eagle."

Hinata nodded, and sliced her thumb open with a kunai, drawing the blood needed to use the jutsu. She quickly made the signs and slammed her summoning hand to the ground, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

A puff of smoke appeared and after it had cleared a small eagle stared up at Hinata.

"Not too bad for a first try, Hinata. Honestly, I was expecting to summon a chick, or maybe even an egg." Kiyoshi complimented.

Hinata looked form her sensei down to the eagle she had summoned, "Hello." She greeted.

"Hi." The small eagle greeted back, "I'm Hane, what's your name?"

"Hinata Hyuga." Hinata replied.

"Hinata, that's a pretty name. I like it." Hane replied. Hinata blushed at the compliment.

"Thank you. Hane is a good name too." Hinata answered. Hane ducked his head into his wing in response, little did Hinata know that it was the eagle's way of blushing.

"So why did you summon me, Hinata?" Hane asked.

"She's learning the Kuchiyose no Jutsu." Kiyoshi answered for Hinata.

Hane turned to look at the older man, "Kiyoshi-sama? A pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise, young one." Kiyoshi replied. "How are things in your realm?"

"All is well, no complaints." Hane answered, "Though, I'm too young to know what's really going on."

"I see." Kiyoshi said.

"If you have no need of me, I'd like to go back home." Hane said.

"Of course, Hane. Sorry to have disturbed you." Hinata said.

"It's no problem. Good luck, Hinata. Hopefully, I'll see you again." Hane replied.

"I hope so as well." Hinata answered, "Farewell." With that, the young eagle disappeared in a similar puff of smoke to the one that heralded his arrival.

"That was a very good first attempt. So much so, that I'm going to say that you don't need to practice the Kuchiyose any more. We need to wait until your chakra reserves have gotten much larger before we worry about summoning the larger eagles. You are still doing the second stage Rasengan training in your spare time, right?"

"Hai." Hinata affirmed.

"Good." Kiyoshi said, he took up the longbow again and tossed it to Hinata before producing his own bow. He handed her a quiver of arrows and set to teaching her the basics of archery.

* * *

The rest of the week came and passed. Naruto was kind of disappointed as he hadn't had a chance to visit Sasuke in the hospital. From what he had been told, Sasuke should be getting close to returning to full strength. Naruto stepped out of his shower and looked at the formal robes that he was to wear during his party. They were white in the traditional Hyuga style. Naruto then looked at the clock in his room. He had a couple of hours before the party started, maybe he could convince Hiashi to let him go visit Sasuke. Naruto shrugged himself into his robes. He adjusted everything as he was shown by Hiashi until everything was in its place. As soon as he had finished the minor adjustments, he heard a knock at his door.

"Come in, it's unlocked." Naruto called out as he did one final check to make sure everything was in the proper place. He watched from his mirror as the door opened to admit Hinata and Hiashi.

"Very good, Naruto. It looks good on you." Hiashi complimented as he strode into the room.

"You think so?" Naruto asked more to Hinata than to Hiashi. Hinata had just entered the room, and Naruto could do nothing but stare at her. Naruto had thought she was beautiful before, but this... this was perfection. She was wearing an indigo kimono with lavenders patterned on it, and she was wearing the necklace he had won from Tsunade.

"Yes, you look very handsome." Hinata said as she started straightening out a few things on him.

Naruto was speechless as he continued to take in the glory that was Hinata Hyuga. "...perfect." Naruto barely whispered as he continued to drink her in.

Hinata blushed deeply. How could he still do this to her? Every time he complimented her she would still blush like she did when she first met him. "It is now, Naruto-kun." Hinata said as she straightened out another imaginary wrinkle.

"Uh?" Naruto grunted as he shook himself out of his trance, "Oh, thanks."

"Well now that everything is taken care of, we have a couple of hours to ourselves." Hiashi said. He had smirked at Naruto's reaction to his daughter. Hiashi had to admit, Hinata did look beautiful in that particular kimono. She reminded him a lot of Hikari. He quickly derailed that train of thought and refocused on the task at hand, "Is there anything you want to do, or shall we refresh you on what you learned?"

"Actually, there is one thing I'd like to do before the party, father." Naruto answered.

"What's that?" Hiashi inquired.

"I haven't went to see Sasuke since Tsunade healed him. I've been meaning to, but I had all this training for this party. Do you think I can go see him now?" Naruto asked.

"I don't see why not. He is your teammate and friend. I'm sure you want to go see him as well, Hinata." Hiashi said, Hinata nodded in response. Hiashi continued, "Then go, just make sure to be back in time. You cannot be late."

"Thanks pops." Naruto said cheerfully as he took Hinata's hand and began to quickly make his way out of the room.

Hiashi smiled and waved at the couple before they disappeared into the hall. Obito was right, Naruto was going to bring a lot of energy into the Hyuga Clan. Hiashi just hoped that everyone was as accepting of it as he and Hinata were.

* * *

Sasuke was staring out the window of his hospital room. He was thinking on the last things Itachi whispered to him before he passed out.

_"Why are you so weak? You still lack hate."_

Sasuke couldn't get it out of his head. Those words reverberated inside his being. He lacked the hate, the strength, to kill the man who had taken everything from him. It sickened him. Suddenly Sasuke's thoughts turned to a certain blond ninja. Even though Sasuke knew that the Kyuubi was the source of a lot of Naruto's power, the idiot always seemed to come up big, to reach deeper and pull out more, when he needed it.

"Sasuke-kun, do you want some apples?" Sakura asked from the seat beside his bed. She had hardly left his side since he had awoken.

Sasuke was annoyed, he didn't need this. He didn't need people coddling him. He needed strength, he needed someone to test his skills against. He lashed out at Sakura, slapping the plate of apples from her hands.

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked frightfully. Sasuke, however, did not respond.

"What's going on Sasuke, Sakura-chan?" Naruto voice called out as he entered Sasuke's room. He looked down to see all the apple pieces in the floor, and saw how dejected Sakura looked, "Is everything alright?"

Sasuke looked at Naruto, pure hatred in his eyes. He just stared at Naruto.

Naruto realized something was wrong, and decided now was a good time to use what he had been learning over the past week. He quickly found his center and began to ooze of the calm and detachment common amongst the Hyuga.

"Is there something wrong, Sasuke-san?" Naruto asked politely.

Sasuke was slightly taken aback by this change in behavior from the normally brash Naruto. Sakura looked like someone had just slapped her across the face. Hinata, who was standing behind Naruto, lightly touched his shoulder, just to let him know she was there.

"Naruto, fight me, now." Sasuke commanded.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke-san. I cannot do that. You are still recovering, and I have other matters I have to attend to. I cannot afford to fight you now." Naruto said calmly. On the inside though, Naruto wanted more than to rip off those formal robes and beat the ever living hell out of the Uchiha.

"Shut up and fight me." Sasuke said again, this time with his Sharingan active. "You think you helped me? Getting that damn woman, Tsunade or whoever, and butting into my business?" Sasuke got out of his bed and stared Naruto straight in the face.

"Again, I apologize, Sasuke-san. While I would like to fight you, I have more pressing matters to worry about. I have a party that could determine my future with my new family." Naruto said as he gave a quick glance back to Hinata.

Sakura now realized where she had seen those robes before, they were the same as the formal attire worn by most Hyuga men. "Naruto, what are you talking about? What do you mean you have a new family?" She asked.

"Oh, you must not have heard, Sakura-chan. I have been adopted by Hiashi Hyuga. I am now a member of the Hyuga Clan. I have a coming out party later today to prove that I can be a proper member of the Hyuga family." Naruto replied, his calm never wavering. It was difficult, Naruto wanted to yell back at Sasuke. Throw everything the ungrateful jerk was saying right back in his face, but like he had said, his upcoming rite of passage was more important than a scuffle with the Uchiha.

"I don't give a damn about any of that, Kyuubi. Fight me!" Sasuke said as he grabbed Naruto's robes and hefted him into the air a few inches.

"Sasuke-kun, what's wrong with you? Naruto, tell him to stop..." Sakura shouted, almost on the verge of tears.

Inside, Naruto was seething. He was not the demon, and Sasuke knew that. He was trying to get under his skin. On the outside, Naruto's calm wavered for a moment before he regained it. Naruto firmly grasped Sasuke's wrist and forced the Uchiha to let go of his hold, "I've told you, Sasuke-san. I cannot fight you today. Also, I cannot allow you to ruin my attire for the party later this evening. Please calm yourself, or I will be forced to call in a nurse. I am sure the hospital staff will be less than pleased with you moving around before you are completely healed. If you still desire to fight in a couple of days, I'll be more than happy oblige you then. However, I see that my coming here was nothing but a waste of time. So I say, good day to you. Goodbye, Sakura-chan." Naruto promptly turned and left the room. Hinata stayed for a moment to look at her two teammates before quickly following him out the door.

Sasuke was pissed. Not only did Naruto not fight him, but Naruto had dismissed him like he was something not even worth giving time to.

"Sasuke-kun, please, what is wrong with you. I can help. I want to help." Sakura pleaded.

Sasuke looked at her with pure venom in his eyes, "If you want to help, then leave. Go away Sakura. I didn't ask for your company and I don't need it. I just want to be alone right now. You're nothing but useless and annoying, so just leave."

Sakura just looked at Sasuke for a moment, shocked. She managed to stifle her sobs and tears as she nodded and left his room. However, once she was out of his sight, she drowned herself in tears as she ran back to her own home.

* * *

Sasuke was enjoying the newfound peace, until he heard his door open and someone enter. Sasuke looked to see who it was that entered the room, it was Obito.

"I'm sorely disappointed Sasuke." Obito said. "I was hoping you'd break yourself of this hatred."

"What do you care?" Sasuke shouted, "I lost everyone to him. He deserves to die. I will kill him."

"You think I didn't lose people to?" Obito asked. "I come from the Uchiha clan too, or have you forgotten? I lost my parents to him as well, my little brother. Yes, he should die, but I'm not going to go out of my way to kill him."

"Why not, you should be with me." Sasuke said, "We should be hunting him down."

"Because, I found something more important to me than revenge, Sasuke. I found another family. I have my wife and there's the friends I've made during my time in Konoha. You have these, too. Sakura truly loves you, you know that right? Otherwise, she wouldn't put up with all your crap. You also have a new brother, a younger one."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Naruto, Sasuke, I'm talking about Naruto. Haven't you noticed it? All this time, he's looked up to you. You're the one he wants to be like. You were damn near perfect in everything you've done, Sasuke. Naruto wants to, he strives to be like you, as good as you. Remind you of anybody?"

Sasuke sat stock still. The situation perfectly described the relationship Sasuke had with Itachi before the betrayal. Sasuke looked down, trying to process everything that was going on.

"I see you've realized it, Sasuke. In this situation you're Itachi and Naruto is you. If you keep giving yourself to this hatred Sasuke, you will become like Itachi. Do you want that? Will you betray Naruto like Itachi betrayed you? There's only one thing that I can guarantee if that happens, Sasuke." Obito continued his lecture.

"What's that?"

"Itachi wins. He's ingrained in you this seed and wants it to grow. He wants to destroy your family not once but twice. He did it on his own the first time, but the second time will be even sweeter to him, for you will have destroyed your family of your own will. Fight him, Sasuke. Don't give Itachi the pleasure of stripping all of your family from you. I am here for you, and so are your teammates. Besides, don't you want to figure out where Naruto get's his power?"

"It's because of the Kyuubi, I know that already."

"That's not it, Sasuke. Naruto is not powerful because of the Kyuubi, even though it helps. Naruto is powerful because of his friends. He fights not for himself, but others. Because of this, he is able to dig deeper within himself to draw out powers no one thought he had. This is a Konoha ninja's true strength, the strength of friendship."

Sasuke didn't reply as he reflected on Obito's words.

"I hope that you see that what I've said here is true." Obito continued, "Come see me when the doctors release you, there's much we need to discuss about you and your training. Have a good day, Sasuke. See you later." Obito concluded the conversation as he left the room.

Sasuke looked back out the window. He never even saw the four figures that had retreated from the rooftop across the street.

* * *

Naruto was trying his best not to lose his patience. He knew how much this party meant to him, Hinata, and Hiashi, but this damn party was so boring. He had been meeting and greeting various dignitaries and influential people. He acted as Hinata had showed him, he was the perfect gentleman, but it was starting to grate on his nerves. He could see all the fake smiles everyone was giving to everyone else, and he hated it. It was thought the thing was nothing but an excuse for all of them to get together and lie to each other about this, that, and the other thing.

Suddenly, Naruto felt a soft touch on his shoulder. He turned to see Hinata giving him a small smile, as though she was encouraging him.

"You're doing fine, Naruto-kun." She whispered to him.

"Thanks, hime." Naruto replied, just as quiet. He looked around to see that, finally, he had met almost everyone there. He just hoped that he hadn't done anything that would be deemed shameful. With any luck the party would be over soon. Soon, Naruto saw a very familiar woman striding over to him.

"Hello, Naruto." Tsunade said as she approached the younger blond.

"Greetings, Hokage-sama." Naruto replied as he bowed to her, "It's nice to see you here."

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world." Tsunade answered. She gave Naruto a sly wink. Naruto hoped that she wasn't planning on doing something rash.

"I'm truly glad you came. How is Shizune-san? I haven't seen her since we came back to the village." Naruto asked. He was just trying to make small talk now, he'd rather talk to Tsunade than anyone else there, except for Hinata, but she had her own rounds to make.

"Shizune is fine. However, between the paperwork and running the hospital, we are both a little overworked I think." Tsunade answered.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Naruto replied formally, "If there is anything I can do to help, let me know."

"I might take you up on that offer, Naruto. Where is your new father? I haven't seen him." Tsunade asked.

Naruto looked around, "I'm afraid I do not know, Hokage-sama. I haven't seen him in the past few minutes."

"Do you mind helping me look for him? I'm afraid I don't know my way around the Hyuga estates to well." Tsunade replied.

"I would be happy to. If you would follow me." Naruto said as he lead Tsunade to the door leading into the house from the courtyard. As soon as the door was shut and they were out of earshot, Naruto let out a large breath. "Thanks, I thought I was going to explode out there." Naruto said quietly, not wanting to take any chances.

"No problem, twerp." Tsunade responded, "I might actually take you up on helping with that paperwork, though. Anyway, I really do need to speak with Hiashi, I need him to help me going over the finalizations of the new treaty with Suna."

"He should be in the study, if I know him." Naruto replied, "Speaking of Suna, are Gaara and the rest of them still here?"

"Yes, they are still being detained until everything is finalized. Once it's done, they'll be released." Tsunade answered.

"Do you think I can see him?" Naruto asked hopefully, "I haven't got a chance to talk to him since I beat him outside of Konoha. I told him I'd be his friend, and I want to keep that promise. You know me, granny,

Tsunade chuckled, "I think I can work something out squirt." At that they reached the door to Hiashi's study. The door was open, and Hiashi was indeed sitting at his desk. "Thanks, Naruto. You have a party to go back to."

Naruto sighed, "Don't remind me. Later, Tsunade." Naruto turned and left to return to the party while Tsunade entered the study.

* * *

A few hours after the end of the party, all the VIPs were heading back to where they had came from, and Naruto was with Hinata, Hiashi, and Hanabi in Hiashi's study. Naruto had met Hanabi a few times over the week, but he was so busy preparing for the party that evening, that he hadn't really had a chance to get to know her.

"Well, I have good news." Hiashi stated as everyone got settled. Naruto, for one, was extremely glad to be back into normal clothes. "I got a lot of compliments about you, Naruto. It seems everyone was rather impressed with you."

"Good." Naruto replied, "It took everything I had to do that. I'd rather fight Zabuza and Haku again than do that again. I still think I should have 'accidentally' tipped the bowl of punch over on that prince from the Land of Tea. Would have been funny."

"No matter, I don't see the council having any grounds to try and punish you." Hiashi stated, "I think I can officially welcome you into the Hyuga clan now."

"Thanks, dad." Naruto said.

"Father?" Hanabi ventured.

"Yes, Hanabi." Hiashi answered.

"Does this mean I have a big brother now?" Hanabi asked.

"Sure does, imooto." Naruto replied for Hiashi, a large grin plastered on his face.

Hanabi just looked Naruto for a moment, before smiling back and walking over to her new brother, "Welcome to the family, Naruto-niisan." Hanabi said as she wrapped her arms around Naruto.

Naruto looked at Hiashi and Hinata for a moment. Hiashi nodded, and Hinata smiled. Naruto looked down at the top of Hanabi's head as he returned the hug, "Thanks, Hanabi-chan. Glad to be here." Hanabi looked up at him and he gave her another prize-winning smile.

Everything was right with the world now. Naruto finally had a family. He couldn't believe how lucky he had been over the last month. First he had found love in Hinata, then he got something he had always wanted, a family. With any luck, he could live a normal life now.

* * *

A/N

I'm still happy to see all the positive reviews and that you all are happy with the story so far. I hope I can continue to produce something that you all enjoy reading.

I hope you enjoyed Chapter 12, until next time.

EDIT: I have no idea why the whole story loaded in bold, that was odd. However it should be fixed now, enjoy.


	13. Chapter 13 Pursuit

Four Man Squads

Chapter 13 - Pursuit

Sasuke couldn't believe what he was doing, but he had to start somewhere. It had been three days since his outburst at the hospital and Obito's lecture. Sasuke had spent most of those next days figuring out what to do about his ambitions and his friends. Sasuke mulled it over, and he came to the conclusion that Obito was right, he was still letting Itachi ruin his life. Sasuke decided that he'd try to live his life, not the life Itachi wanted him to live.

Thus is how he found himself standing at the door to the Haruno residence. He had never had more than a passing interest in girls, he had always focused on gaining the power to kill Itachi, but he was trying to put that on the back burner for now, and focus on what he had. Sasuke raised his fist and knocked politely on the door. A few moments later, a rather plain looking man with black hair opened the door.

"Hello, how may I help you?" the man greeted cordially.

"May I speak to Sakura?" Sasuke replied.

"And who might you be?" the man answered.

"I'm Sasuke Uchiha, her teammate." Sasuke answered the question.

"Ah, Sasuke-san. Sakura talks a lot about you. Yes, yes, I'll go get her. Do you wish to come in?" the older man replied as he opened the door to let Sasuke in.

"Thank you." Sasuke said as he took the invitation. Sasuke looked around the house, it was obvious that Sakura's parents were civilians. There weren't anything that suggested weapons or jutsu scrolls that would be kept in reach in a typical ninja household. A ninja always had to be prepared, just in case. Sasuke took a seat on a couch. A few moments later, Sakura descended the stairs in a hurry, followed by the man Sasuke assumed was her father.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura all but squealed as she rushed over to him, "I thought dad was playing a trick on me when he said you were here. Why did you come over?"

"Well, uh..." Sasuke started, he really had no idea how to talk to girls. He might have to go talk to Naruto about it, he seemed to do pretty good with Hinata. "I came to ask you out on a date."

Sakura was speechless, or at least that's what it seemed like. She just sat there with a blank look on her face and staring at Sasuke. Sasuke looked back at her.

"Sakura?" Sasuke said.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun. I thought you said you wanted to take me out on a date." Sakura said.

"I did, Sakura." Sasuke replied, slightly annoyed. Sakura again looked at him weirdly, but Sasuke shrugged it off, "Do you want to or not?"

"Of course, just let me go and freshen up, and we'll go." Sakura said as she practically leapt from the couch and bolted up the stairs. A few moments later, Sakura came back down the stairs. Sasuke could tell she had put on some perfume, as her scent had changed from earlier.

Sasuke and Sakura soon left her house and were walking down the streets of Konoha in relative silence, "So, Sasuke-kun, where are we going?"

"Well, I had planned on getting dinner first." Sasuke replied, "Then, we can see where we go from there."

Sakura asked another question, "Where we eating at?"

"Well, I did like that restaurant we went to with Hinata and Naruto after wee became a team. Osaka's, wasn't it? Their sushi was really good, I'd like to go back." Sasuke answered.

"Okay, sounds good." Sakura answered. She was ecstatic to actually be out on a date with Sasuke, but something was on her mind. "Sasuke-kun, why did you ask me out? The last time I saw you, you called me useless and annoying. It hurt, a lot."

Sasuke let out a breath, he had known this was coming at some point or another, "I'm sorry, Sakura. I was dealing with a lot of stuff that day. You see, all my life I've been striving to surpass my brother, Itachi, the man who killed my family. It's all I've focused on, all I've wanted. I just wanted to kill my brother so much, it consumed me. I had no time for anything or anyone that wouldn't help me on my path. However, after I had said those things to you, Obito showed up. He and I talked for a little while, and then we talked again after I left the hospital. He made me realize that there are other things to live for, like friends and family. So, here I am, trying to fix my problems, and trying to get to my friend better."

"I see." Sakura said, "I'm glad you finally saw that we are worth getting to know, Sasuke-kun. I care for you, and I know Naruto and Hinata do too. I know your life has been rough, but you don't have to take it all on yourself. We are here for you Sasuke, just remember that."

"Thanks, Sakura." Sasuke replied earnestly, "I see that now. Anyway, I know you heard it when I did, what do you think about Naruto being adopted by the Hyuga's?"

Sakura looked at Sasuke for a moment, "I don't really know. I know he's never had a family, so I'm happy he has a chance to have one. However, did you see the way he acted when you challenged him? That was so unlike Naruto. While he's annoying at times, I do kinda enjoy his antics. I hope that being a Hyuga doesn't change him too much."

"I know." Sasuke replied simply, "It was almost like he was a different person."

Before either of the two genin knew it, they were standing in front of Osaka's. Sasuke politely held the door open for Sakura as they entered the restaurant to enjoy the first part of their date.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata were out on a date of their own. The last week or so had been hectic for both of them, and just yesterday the council of elders accepted Naruto as a member of the clan, albeit begrudgingly. Nothing could be better for the two of them at the moment.

"So where are we going?" Hinata asked as she rested her head on Naruto's shoulder.

"Well, I was thinking about going to Ichiraku's." Naruto started and immediately noticed the look that crossed his girlfriend's face. He knew that, while she liked ramen, she couldn't eat it constantly, like he did. Honestly, he had said the first part only as a tease. "But, I know that we ate there a lot over the week. So I figured I'd let you pick."

"How about that place we ate as a team that first time?" Hinata suggested.

"Sounds good." Naruto replied, "That place was pretty good, if I remember correctly."

"Anyway, what about after dinner?" Hinata asked.

"There's that new disaster movie I wouldn't mind seeing." Naruto answered, "But, I figured we'd see what was playing, and pick something we both want to see."

"Okay, sounds like a plan." Hinata answered happily. This was their first true date since those nights at the Apple Festival. The two of them had stolen away for a quick lunch at Ichiraku's a few times over the last week, but nothing that could be truly be considered a date.

"Yep, sure does." Naruto replied, just as happy. However, their happiness subsided a little as they approached the restaurant. Naruto spotted Sasuke in one of the windows, but the odd thing was he was eating... with Sakura, almost like it was a date. Naruto shook that idea from his head. There's no way Sasuke would be on a date with Sakura, Sasuke hardly even looked at girls.

"Naruto-kun, is that Sasuke with Sakura?" Hinata asked, not sure if she should be too trusting of her eyes at the moment.

"Yes, Hinata-hime, it seems like it." Naruto replied.

"Do you want to go somewhere else? After what happened at the hospital I wouldn't blame you." Hinata asked.

"No, hime. I don't have anything against him. Let's just try and enjoy our night, if he tries to start something, we'll leave then." Naruto answered.

"Okay." Hinata agreed. She trusted Naruto, and if he said he wouldn't start anything, then he wouldn't start anything.

Naruto and Hinata entered the restaurant together and were escorted to a seat on to close to Sasuke and Sakura for comfort. The bigger problem was that both Naruto and Hinata were sure that Sasuke had seen them. The moment they feared soon happened as Sasuke and Sakura came up to them after they had placed their orders.

"How's it going, idiot?" Sasuke asked as he approached the coupled, Sakura hot on his heels.

"Hi, Hinata, Naruto. What are you two doing?" Sakura asked.

"We are on a date, actually." Naruto said. "So, I don't want any trouble. Okay."

Sakura was the one who replied, "Really? We are on a date, too."

Naruto and Hinata both looked flabbergasted at that. "You two are on a date? Really?" Naruto asked as he looked at Sasuke quizzically.

"Yes, idiot. We are. So when did you two finally get together?" Sasuke asked.

"When we went to retrieve Tsunade." Naruto answered truthfully, "How about you two, didn't even know you were a couple. And, how do you know we are a couple?"

Sakura didn't have a chance to answer before Sasuke cut her off, "We aren't a couple, we're just on a date. As for the second question, I saw how you two were walking to the restaurant before you saw me. Can I just say something to you, Naruto. I'll leave you alone afterwards."

"Sure, Sasuke." Naruto answered.

"I just want to say I'm sorry for my actions the other day." Sasuke said, "I had a lot on my mind, and I lost myself. I talked with Obito after you left, and he's helped me to realize that I'm living my life for the wrong reasons, so I'm trying to change. That's why I'm here with Sakura, I had said some hurtful things to her that day as well, and now I'm trying to repair the damage I've done."

"It's alright, Sasuke." Naruto said, "I can understand what you went through, now that I have a family of my own, I don't ever want to lose them. I wish you luck in changing your life. Oh, and if you ever do want that fight, I'm still game."

Sasuke smirked, "I just might hold you to that, idiot."

Naruto grinned back, "I'm counting on it. Anyway, what are you two going to do?"

Sasuke looked at Sakura, and they both shrugged, "Don't know, we just finished eating, and we haven't made any plans."

Naruto and Hinata looked at each other and nodded. Hinata was the one that spoke up, "How about you two join us. We were going to see a movie after dinner. We can just make it a double date."

"Sounds like fun." Sakura replied, "What do you think, Sasuke-kun?"

"Sounds good to me." Sasuke said. "Mind if we sit down?"

"Not at all." Naruto said as he got out of his side of the booth and went to sit with Hinata on her side. Sakura and Sasuke then sat down on the now vacant side of the booth. The four of them chatted away as Naruto and Hinata ate. Naruto and Hinata shared stories of their trip to recover Kiyoshi and Tsunade, and the training. Sasuke opened up more to his teammates and dropped some of the mysteriousness that was Sasuke Uchiha. Sakura started in wonderment at the relationship between Naruto and Hinata. They were very close, holding hands almost constantly, and occasionally feeding each other parts of their meals. Sakura hoped beyond hope that she could have a relationship with Sasuke like that one day.

* * *

All was well in Konoha. Although the village was now shorthanded and everyone had to pick up the slack, including those jonin with genin squads, everyone was in good spirits. Naruto was sitting in the courtyard of his new home watching Hinata, Hanabi, and Hiashi spar and work on Hinata and Hanabi's Jyuuken. He was dead tired from having to single-handedly carry out multiple D-rank missions. Tsunade was taking full advantage of his ability to create massive amounts of Shadow Clones, and he was almost doing all of the D-ranked missions that came into the village. Naruto wasn't really paying attention to anything as his mind wandered. He recalled the memory of Kiyoshi teaching him the basics of Talon taijutsu, and what he said just before that.

"It's always good to have a set style to fall back on, eh?" Naruto muttered to himself. He got up and went to take a closer look at the Hyuga training. The Jyuuken always impressed Naruto, the movements were all very fluid, and watching two Hyuga fight was like watching a dance.

Currently, Hiashi was taking on both Hanabi and Hinata at the same time.

"Good, Hinata." Hiashi complimented as he was forced to move out of the way of a strike to the chest. Hanabi took the momentary distraction to attempt to land a blow to Hiashi's back.

"Faster, Hanabi." Hiashi called out as he sidestepped his youngest daughter's attack. Hanabi and Hinata both took a quick breather to figure out where they were going to attack from next. After a few moments, they split up and tried to trap Hiashi between them. They struck out at the same time, Hinata going high, and Hanabi low.

"Good, good." Hiashi as he twisted out of the way, "But still to slow." Hiashi's eyes widened as both Hinata and Hanabi stopped on a dime and changed their attacks in mid-swing. He couldn't dodge both with the way he was dodging, he could either take Hinata's shot to the head, or Hanabi's blow to his abdomen. Hiashi chose the latter. Hinata's palm sailed clear as Hanabi's landed directly in his stomach. If it had been a real fight, that was a devastating blow with the Jyuuken.

"Very good, both of you. I wasn't expecting that. Let's take a breather, and then we'll work on your dodging." Hiashi said with a smile.

"Hai, father." Hinata and Hanabi replied in unison as they went to rest under a tree that had refreshments laid out under it.

"Is there something I can help you with, son?" Hiashi asked, he had noticed Naruto come closer to the training.

"Actually, yes there is." Naruto replied, "I was wondering if you could teach me the Jyuuken."

Hiashi simply looked at Naruto for a moment, "All members of the Hyuga clan are taught the Jyuuken from a young age. However, your a special case Naruto, you do not have the Byakugan, which is what makes the Jyuuken so powerful. I will teach you if you truly want to learn, but you'll never be proficient with it, and you won't be able to learn any of the advanced maneuvers."

"I know that." Naruto replied, "However, I've felt the Jyuuken before, in both my match with Neji and in training with Hinata. I know even if the strike isn't accurate, the Jyuuken still hurts a lot. I don't plan on mastering the style, since I can't, but I think it can help me in a tough situation. An enemy, even one well versed in the ninja of Konoha and the Hyuga clan, won't expect the Jyuuken from someone without the Byakugan."

"I see you've given this a little thought." Hiashi stated, "I'll be happy to teach you. We'll begin tomorrow, okay?"

"Alright!" Naruto said with his usual vigor, "I'll master it in no time, just watch."

Hiashi chuckled, "I'm sure you will." With that, Hiashi and Naruto both joined Hinata and Hanabi resting in the shade of the tree.

* * *

The next few weeks passed relatively uneventfully. Team 7, despite almost snapping, had come back stronger than ever. Now that Sasuke seemed more open to teamwork and about himself, the team functioned more cohesively. No longer were Sasuke and Naruto competing against each other all the time, but they worked together almost seamlessly. The only time anyone could call them rivals were when they were each training, each still wanted to out do the other, or when they were sparring against each other. Obito had to separate the two of them on multiple occasions as their fights escalated. However, even though they would pass the limits of sparring, neither had ever done more than minimal damage to the other.

Sakura was also extremely happy, Sasuke had opened up to her as well as the rest of the team, and they had went on a few more dates after that first one. Tonight, she was going to surprise Sasuke. She was striding over to his apartment, in hopes that he would want to go to the dance hall with her. She had heard Naruto and Hinata talking about it one day. The place had opened up right before the Suna-Oto Invasion, and apparently was a hot spot among Konoha's couples. She had asked Hinata and Naruto about it, and they had told her that it was a blast, the music was good, and the staff was nice.

However, Sakura's ideas were to all come to naught. She saw a light on in Sasuke's apartment and what looked like people fighting inside, she then heard a large crash as the lights in Sasuke's apartment went out. She stared on in horror as four Oto ninja leapt out of the apartment window. The largest one was carrying a round barrel with seals all around it as they departed.

Sakura hid to make sure she wasn't seen and then hurried to Sasuke's apartment. She hoped against hope that her mind was playing tricks on her, and that Sasuke was fine. However, she reached Sasuke's door to find the lock and door broken, most of his furniture in tatters, and blood splattered across the floor and walls. Sasuke was no where to be seen.

Sakura took off towards Ninja Ops, she had to inform Tsunade immediately. She didn't slow up for anything or anybody as she trekked through the streets of Konoha. She entered the building and flew past the receptionist and anyone else in her way, she did not stop until she came to the doors of the Hokage's office. She knocked hurriedly, almost not waiting for permission to enter.

"Come in." Sakura heard Tsunade's voice from the other side of the door.

Sakura then exploded into the room, "Hokage-sama, you have to help. Sasuke-kun... Sasuke-kun has been... been..."

"Spit it out, already!" Tsunade yelled.

"Sasuke's been kidnapped!" Sakura shouted back in response.

Tsunade just sat there slack jawed and wide eyed for a moment as the words registered. "Do you know who, and are you sure?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Sakura replied, "It was Oto ninja, I watched them leave his apartment, and I went to investigate. Sasuke was no where to be found, and there was blood everywhere." After saying that Sakura collapsed from her emotions. She was nothing more than a crying heap on Tsunade's floor.

"Damn it. Almost all of the jonin and chuunin are out on missions, and I can't spare any we have, as they are essential to the defense of the village. Shizune's still out on a mission as well. Damn it." Tsunade sat to think. "I hate to do it to the boy, but I'm going to have to call in Shikamaru first thing tomorrow."

"T-t-tomorrow? But Tsunade-sama, S-S-Sasuke might..." Sakura managed between tears and sobs.

"Sakura, if they wanted Sasuke dead, he already is. No, I think Orochimaru wants him for another purpose. Orochimaru needs Sasuke alive." Tsunade said. "I don't like this anymore than you, but we have to wait. I don't feel comfortable sending out a team of only genin. Shikamaru is the first chuunin that will be free. He's due back tonight, I'm going to let him get a good night's rest and then I'm sending him out with a squad of genin. It's all we can do. Obito and Rin are due back in two days, and as soon as he's back I'm sending them out as well."

"O-okay." Sakura said as she tried to pull herself back together.

"For now, Sakura. Go home and get yourself together. I'll make sure I send the best possible team I can to retrieve him. We will bring him back." Tsunade assured her.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Sakura said as she stood and slowly made her way out of the office and back home.

* * *

Shikamaru wasn't too pleased. He had just gotten back from a mission with a few other chuunin, it was a training mission to introduce him to the types of things chuunin do. Shino was supposed to go with him, but something important came up and Shino had been dispatched with his father on another mission. Now, after only being in Konoha for a night, he was back in the Hokage's office awaiting orders for what he was sure was another mission.

"Shikamaru, I hate to do this to you on such short rest, but I need you to lead a mission of great importance. It will be classified as A-rank. Not exactly the ideal first lead for a new chuunin." Tsunade said as Shikamaru had slouched into a chair.

"Sounds troublesome." Shikamaru replied, "Can't someone else do it."

"I'm afraid you are the only one, however it's yours to decline." Tsunade stated.

"What's the mission?" Shikamaru asked.

"Sasuke Uchiha has been captured by Oto-nins. We know there is at least four, however we do not know if there are more. You are to gather a team of the best genins you can find and track the Oto shinobi down, and retrieve Sasuke." Tsunade informed him.

"I was right, it is troublesome." Shikamaru stated indifferently, "But, I can't leave a comrade out to dry, so I guess I'm in."

"Good, gather your team as quickly as possible. The enemy has a one night head start on you. You'll be playing catch up." Tsunade informed him.

"Got it." Shikamaru replied, "I can use any genin I see fit?"

"Yes. Also, I have a few suggestions...." Tsunade replied.

* * *

Almost an hour after Tsunade's meeting Shikamaru had his team ready. While he would have liked to take Shino, and Rock Lee if he was healthy, he was still happy with the group he had attained. His team consisted of Naruto, Neji, Hinata, Shiroi, Tsuneni, Chouji, Kiba, and Haku.

"So, Shikamaru, what's the plan?" Naruto asked.

"Well, this is a rescue situation. This means that we are the pursuers, and it's easier for our enemies to get the first strike or ambush us. Therefore, we are going to move in a squad formation most suitable to reacting to a sudden strike. If anyone moves on their own, without my orders, it could kill us all." Shikamaru answered.

Everyone took a gulp at that, and inwardly swore to obey Shikamaru's orders.

"We'll be moving in a modified line formation with five positions. Kiba and Hinata, you two will be in the front scout position. Kiba, you're always traveling throughout the Land of Fire with Akamaru, so you know the terrain more than any of us. Also, you have a keen sense of smell, that will let you sniff out traps. This is also the reason Hinata is with you, with the Byakugan she'll be able to see traps as well. Second in line is Shiroi and I. From this position I can give orders to Kiba and Hinata and anyone behind me can see my hand signals. Shiroi, you're in this spot as our forward fighter. When we find the enemy, you'll be the first heavy hitter we send in."

Shiroi nodded as he continued listening.

"Third will be Naruto and Haku. Naruto has quick reactions, so it's best to keep him in a situation where he can assist the front and back. Also, Haku's ice mirrors allow him to move quickly to almost anywhere, so he'll be most useful in a position to help the front or back as well. Fourth will be Chouji and Tsuneni. Chouji has the most power out of the squad, so while the rest create openings, you'll be cleaning house. Tsuneni, you're the second rear guard, if anything gets past Neji, you're the next line of defense. Then the last place goes to Neji, he has the most difficult task of rear scout, with his Byakugan he can always check the squads blind spots. The Front position should keep focused on the front. Position two will also focus on the front, as we are more than likely to be attacked from there, Position three and Chouji, watch the sides. Tsuneni and Neji, you two are to keep an eye on the back as best you can. Now, let me check all of our gear so I know exactly what we have." Shikamaru finished his explanation.

Everyone took out all the ninja gear they had, except for Shiroi. When Shikamaru looked at him questioningly, Shiroi shrugged.

"I have a lot of stuff sealed into scrolls, it'll take forever to fish it all out." the white-haired genin stated, "So I'll give you a rundown. Two katana, fifteen kunai, twenty shuriken, five exploding tags, three smoke bombs, two sets of nunchaku, a bo staff, a spear, two battleaxes, and a partridge in a pear tree."

Everyone just stared at the melee genius. Shiroi just shrugged again.

"What? I like to be prepared." Shiroi answered.

"Okay." Shikamaru said as he committed the list of equipment to memory, "If no one has anything to say, then I'll finish up with the most important thing."

No one said anything as they waited for Shikamaru to finish, "Sasuke isn't a very close friend of mine, nor is he important to me. However, he is a fellow Konoha ninja. He is a comrade. This is why we'll risk our lives for him. This is the way of Konoha. Even someone like me can't goof off in this situation. I'm responsible for all of your lives."

"Hah, now you're starting to deserve that chuunin title." Kiba laughed as the turned to begin the mission.

"All right, let's go." Shikamaru commanded.

"Wait!" a girl screamed from behind them. They all turned around to see Sakura.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. I can't take you with us." Shikamaru informed her, "The Hokage informed me of what happened. You're emotions would get in the way to much to afford taking you, I can't have anyone do anything rash."

Sakura nodded, then looked at Naruto and Hinata with a pleading look in her eye, "Please, bring him back. I know you two can do it. Naruto, Hinata, please..." Sakura couldn't finish because she began to break down again. Hinata went up to the pinkette and laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder while Naruto spoke up.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan." Naruto said with a smile, "I promise we'll bring him back."

"Thanks, Naruto." Sakura replied between sobs.

"Don't worry, we'll bring him back. I swear it on my life." Naruto said as he gave Sakura a thumbs up.

"Hey, Naruto. You sure you can keep that promise?" Kiba taunted.

"I won't take back my words, Kiba. That's my nindo." Naruto replied.

Hinata leaned her head closer to Sakura, "I promise we'll bring him back to you, Sakura." With that Hinata stood and returned to the group.

"All right, let's move." Shikamaru said. Everyone complied and quickly got into formation as they began their mission.

* * *

The Sasuke Retrieval Squad was making good time even though they were a large group. Shikamaru he probably took more people than he needed, but the enemy was carrying dead weight with them and his squad knew the surrounding area better. Unless something unforeseen happened, Shikamaru's squad would catch up with the Oto ninja's well before they reached the border of the Land of Fire.

"There's a smell of blood in the air." Kiba announced as Akamaru let out a whine, "We're getting closer to it."

"Can you see anything, Hinata?" Shikamaru asked.

"No." Hinata said as she shook her head, "It's beyond the range of my Byakugan."

"I'll be able to pick up scents as we move closer." Kiba said as they continued through the forest canopy.

"Alright, we'll continue onward then." Shikamaru commanded, and the team complied as they continued on their course.

A few minutes later, Kiba and Akamaru sniffed the air, "I got seven scents. One of them is Sasuke, and I'm pretty sure one is that proctor from the final rounds of the exams. The proctor and one other aren't moving, while Sasuke and the other four are heading towards the border. What's the plan?"

"Well, at least we know the kidnappers don't appear to have any reinforcements." Shikamaru said, "Since there is the smell of blood, there was obviously a battle. If we were to head there we could gather info, but we would have to approach carefully, to avoid a misunderstanding and coming under friendly fire. We would lose a lot of time."

"The kidnappers would be able to reach the border before we could get to them if we do that." Haku chimed in.

"Our only choice is to continue after Sasuke, but our enemy is on alert now, wary of pursuers. This means we'll have to face down possible ambushes and traps. Everyone keep your senses sharp, we have to find them before they can ambush us. If you see anything out of the ordinary, analyze it, we can't miss anything." Shikamaru replied.

"Alright! I'll beat the shit out of these guys with my new jutsu." Naruto exclaimed as they continued their trek.

"The smell of the enemy is all around here!" Kiba yelled a few moments later.

"Everyone stop!" Shikamaru commanded. Hinata was already scanning the forward area.

"There's six exploding tags surrounding the area." She said as she observed. A few moments later Neji joined her on the branch.

"It's in a barrier style formation." He commented.

"That's a rather high level trap." Tsuneni observed.

"If we go in, then it all goes to hell, right?" Shiroi asked indifferently.

"Yeah, we have to go around." Shikamaru stated as the team returned to formation and sped around the trap.

* * *

A few hours later, Shikamaru's squad was making slow progress through the forest.

"We seem to be coming across a lot of traps." Haku commented.

"Yeah, but it's mostly rushed work, doesn't seem like they are taking much time making them." Shikamaru commented.

"Hey, Naruto, watch out. There's a wire under your next step." Kiba told the blond.

"So many damn wires." Naruto complained.

"Naruto, wait!" Shikamaru yelled. Naruto was getting ready to step on a hidden wire, and there was no time to stop him. Naruto's eyes widened as he noticed the wire hidden by the first, and he quickly spun on his planted foot, set his other foot down in between the two wires, and gracefully spun his other foot around and outside the trap.

Neji cocked an eye at this, those movements were strangely familiar. He'd have to ask Naruto about it at a later time. They hadn't had time to talk much since Naruto became part of his clan. It seemed when Neji wasn't on a mission, Naruto was, and vice versa.

Shikamaru let out a sigh of relief as he bent down to examine the trap, "I see, the first wire is intentionally made visible while a second is hidden by painting it green to blend into the forest floor. This is a rather well made double trap. That means..."

"They're either resting, or they have set up an ambush." Tsuneni finished for him. Shikamaru nodded. Both Hinata and Neji activated their Byakugan and scanned the surrounding area.

"Got them." Neji stated.

"About one hundred meters ahead." Hinata said to finish the statement.

"Alright, let's go get Sasuke back." Naruto said.

"Sorry, Naruto but it's time for me to show off my new trick." Kiba boasted.

"Me too." Chouji agreed with Kiba.

"Now, don't get hasty. As soon as I have a strategy, we'll engage the enemy." Shikamaru reined his team in. Shikamaru quickly came up with his plan, and informed everyone of their roles.

"Everyone clear?" Shikamaru asked to a response of nods, "Good, then let's get this done." With that, the team split into two squads. Neji, Shikamaru, Haku, and Shiroi snuck off to one side, while the others snuck around to the other, preparing for a pincer attack.

However, the plan was cut short when one of the Oto-nins threw a kunai with three exploding tags on it into a tree above Shikamaru.

"Damn it, they know we're here." Shikamaru said as the his squad jumped out of the bushes just as the tags went off. The explosion knocked the four of them into the clearing.

"Eh, what's this?" the effeminate looking ninja said, "Poked in a bush and got bugs instead of rabbits."

"Hey, now, wait a second." Shikamaru said as he got up, "We don't want a fight, we are here to negotiate."

"Then what are these?" the six-armed man said as he pulled something from the other side of the clearing and the rest of the squad a dragged out into the open."

Kiba had taken that moment to throw a smoke bomb down.

"Ha ha, what good is a smoke bomb going to do you? There is no escape from me." The six-armed man called out, "These strings are thinner than wire and stronger. I've laid them all over the area, I'll know where you go."

"So you purposely made those two wires visible?" Shikamaru said in slight wonderment, "Triple traps, I didn't even know such a thing existed. What a blunder."

"You guys are all..." The six-armed man started, but he realized he couldn't move his body, "What the hell? I can't move my body."

"Shadow Possession Jutsu, success." Shikamaru stated, "You should also realize there are things like this. Thanks for falling into our trap."

"To return your words, I have these kinds of abilities." the androgynous man answered as two shuriken appeared from nowhere and forced Shikamaru to break his jutsu. Just as soon as movement returned to their bodies, the biggest ninja in the Oto group slammed his hands to the ground and encased Shikamaru and his squad.

"Doton Kekkai: Doro Domu!" The fat man announced as his jutsu completed.

"Dammit!" Shikamaru shouted as the dome covered them.

"Let us out of here!" Naruto screamed.

"Go on, I want to rest up here and enjoy my meal." The team could hear the fat man through the walls.

"Just don't take too long Jirobo." One of his companions called out.

"Naruto, get out of the way!" Kiba yelled at Naruto before taking up a familiar stance, "Tsuuga!" Kiba drilled at the wall until he couldn't maintain the spin. Kiba was about to restart his attack as he watched the stone wall start to repair itself, "Hey!"

"We saw that." Tsuneni answered before Kiba could continue.

"This isn't an ordinary wall." Neji said as he activated his Byakugan, "Byakugan!"

Hinata quickly followed suit. Both of them gasped in shock as they watched what was happening.

"What is this?" Hinata asked, slightly afraid.

"What is it?" Shikamaru asked in response.

"This dome is sucking our chakra dry." Neji answered.

"Damn, I'm losing my strength." Naruto said as he slumped against the wall.

"I am as well." Shiroi stated as he sat down. Hinata collapsed beside Naruto. Everyone was taking up resting positions to help conserve stamina.

Neji still had his Byakugan active, and was scanning the res of his party. Everyone's chakra was steadily being eaten by the dome, "This isn't looking good, Shikamaru."

"There's no other way!" Kiba shouted, "We have to bust a hole in this wall before our chakra runs out." Kiba then dug in his pack for a bit, "Take this, boy." Kiba tossed the soldier pill to Akamaru. Akamaru's fur turned red and he let out a small roar.

"Beast Clone Jutsu," Kiba announced his jutsu as Akamaru turned into a copy of Kiba. The two of them used each other to push off on and began to spin wildly, "Gatsuuga!" However, Kiba and Akamaru couldn't completely control where they were attacking. The Gatsuuga mad a bunch of small craters, but no lasting damage as the walls repaired themselves.

"Damn, the wall repairs itself as soon as it's damaged. The floor too." Kiba grunted in frustration. "We can't hold out much longer, we are going to lose all our chakra."

Naruto tried to form a Rasengan, but to no avail. The chakra for the jutsu was sucked away before he could even get the form down. However, Shikamaru was carefully watching the ways the walls were healing.

Shikamaru walked up to one of the walls, "Hey, listen. I want to talk to your leader. We won't follow you or Sasuke anymore. Please let us out."

"Hey!" Kiba yelled.

"Shikamaru, what are you talking about?" Naruto asked.

Tsuneni was the one to respond, "Please be quiet, I know Shikamaru. He has a plan. Chouji, be ready." Chouji nodded and started scarfing down a bag of potato chips.

"Interesting, but you all are my meal." Jirobo answered from outside, "I won't let you out."

Shikamaru adjusted his position a little, 'The only one is fine. Just let me out. All these conflicts are troublesome."

Naruto and Kiba again wanted to say something, but did not as Tsuneni stared them down.

"It seems like your the leader, and yet you're willing to ditch your comrades." Jirobo replied, "When people are placed in a situation where their lives are at risk, their true colors shine. A fool like you doesn't deserve to lead. You're giving up on Sasuke and selling out your friends, and you call yourself a Konoha shinobi. You should die here, I won't let you out."

After Jirobo's rant Shikamaru dropped into his classing thinking pose. After a few moment he opened his eyes, "Neji, Hinata, I'm sorry for the trouble, but could you two scan the area behind Chouji." Both Neji and Hinata did as they were told.

"I see." Neji stated. Hinata nodded.

"Some of the craters are healing slower than others." Hinata explained. "The slowest point is..."

"Over there." both Hyuga said in unison. Neji marked the spot with a kunai.

"All right, Chouji it's your show." Shikamaru stated as he got out of the way.

"Expansion Jutsu!" Chouji announced as he blew up to the size of a boulder. "Human Boulder!" Chouji began to spin rapidly then took off to where the kunai was implanted in the wall and connected with a loud crash and a great amount of force. After a moment of resistance, Chouji drove a hole through the side of the dome. Everyone quickly leapt out of the chakra eating dome.

"Chouji..." Shikamaru said as the team recovered, "You're the best."

"So you got out of my prison, good job." Jirobo's voice dripped with sarcasm as he looked at the nine Konoha nins.

"It's our turn now that we got out!" Kiba yelled as he began his charge."

"Stop!" Neji shouted before Kiba could get anywhere. "It's too dangerous to fight him here. Even though it's nine on one, our chakra is horribly depleted."

"Yeah." Shiroi spoke up, "That and if we spend too much time on this guy, we could lose the rest of them?"

"Then what should we do?" Haku asked.

"We broke through his barrier, we can take this guy." Kiba snarled.

"Annoying flies, you are all merely my prey." Jirobo said in annoyance, "You won't even be a small snack for me." Jirobo then thrust his hand into the ground.

"Everyone move! This is going to be trouble!" Shikamaru commanded as everyone began to get out of the way of the cracking earth. Everyone got out of the way with varying amounts of success. Naruto and Kiba ended up falling on their asses. Shikamaru, Shiroi, and Chouji managed to keep their feet. The others gracefully got out of the way. Neji and Hinata quickly activated their Byakugan to find their enemy in the dust cloud shaken up by his attack.

"Behind us!" Hinata shouted as everyone turned around.

Jirobo stood there holding a giant rock the size of a small hill.

"Impossible..." Haku commented.

"Doton: Doryo Dango!" Jirobo shouted as he chucked the large rock at the team.

"Expansion Jutsu! Human Boulder!" Chouji shouted in response as he smashed his spherical form against the rock, crushing it to pieces. However, he was caught by Jirobo as he tried to run the Oto-nin over. A single knee and a follow up shoulder tackle sent Chouji flying and dispelled his technique. Luckily, Shikamaru was there to catcth Chouji before he landed hard on something.

Everyone else in the group was about to start attacking Jirobo, until Shikamaru spoke up, "Everyone wait! We don't have time to spare, we have to split up from here. Neji, I'm making you co-leader. Take Hinata, Haku, Kiba, Tsuneni, and Chouji and continue after Sasuke. Naruto, Shiroi, and I will stay and take care of him."

"Are you planning on using your shadow trick again? Such a useless move, just one glance and I know how to deal with it." Jirobo taunted, "You were the squad leader? You really think you can beat me if you split up? Must be tedious to work under such a foolish leader, eh?"

Shikamaru stole a glance down at his long time friend. Chouji was pissed and he looked every inch of it.

"Well, I'd kill any trash who'd work under such a shadow loving loser." Jirobo continued his taunts.

"That's it..." Naruto started but never finished.

"He's mine!" Chouji shouted as he got back to his feet, "I'll take care of him!"

"Chouji..." Shikamaru managed as he worried over his friend. He had only ever seen this side of Chouji whenever someone called Chouji a fat ass or something similar. Chouji quickly produced a bag from his equipment pouch.

"Shikamaru, give these soldier pills to everyone." Chouji said.

"Chouji, you've got to be kidding me." Shikamaru said in disbelief.

"You think so? I still got my secret weapon." Chouji replied.

"But..." Shikamaru was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, Shikamaru. I'll stay with him as well, just to make sure he doesn't do anything rash." Tsuneni stated as she took the bag from Chouji, popped a soldier pill, and handed the bag to Shikamaru.

"Chouji, Tsuneni..." Shikamaru whispered as he held on to the bag.

"Shikamaru, what did we come here to do?" Chouji said, "If we lose Sasuke now, we are nothing more than what he said we are, a foolish leader and a bunch of trash.

"Alright, Chouji. It's your show." Shikamaru replied, "Everyone take one, we're going to need it." Shikamaru passed around the soldier pills, everyone did as they were told. "Chouji, Tsuneni, you better catch up to us later."

"Alright." Chouji replied. Tsuneni simply nodded.

"Everyone, let's move." Shikamaru commanded as the rest of the team sped off into the forest, leaving Chouji and Tsuneni face to face with Jirobo.

"I'll make quick work of you two, then I'll go kill the rest of them!" Jirobo shouted as he charged at Chouji and Tsuneni.

"Things won't go as you plan." Chouji said as he took a set of pills out of his pouch. There were three, each a different color. Chouji took out the green one and popped it into his mouth.

"Chouji, be careful. Whatever happens, you can't use the red pill." Tsuneni advised as she dropped into her family's prized taijutsu stance. Chouji rushed forward as well and met Jirobo head on, both of them stopping dead as they made contact. Neither could seem to move the other.

Jirobo's eyes widened in shock as Chouji hefted him up with a primal bellow. "Take this!" Chouji shouted as he chucked Jirobo over his shoulder at right towards Tsuneni.

"Tatakimasu Ogawa!" Tsuneni announced the technique as her form became a blur. She met Jirobo halfway through his journey across the sky. Moving faster than the untrained eye could see, Tsuneni lashed out at all of Jirobo's major joints. Shoulders, knees, ankles, wrists, elbows, nothing was safe from Tsuneni's onslaught. She was hoping to end this quickly. They didn't have to kill the Oto-nin, just take him out of the game.

Tsuneni dropped out of her attack as Jirobo flew on above her, his trajectory mostly unchanged. She saw Chouji grimace in pain out of the corner of her eye.

"Chouji, are you okay?" Tsuneni asked out of concern for her teammate. Even though she didn't show her emotions, it didn't mean she didn't have them.

"I only took the spinach pill, and it hurts this much." Chouji said as he tried to settle himself. He got over the pain and wrapped himself in kunai, "Expansion Jutsu! Spiked Human Boulder!" Chouji began to launch his spiked body at the fallen Jirobo, who was now sitting against a tree.

Jirobo realized what was coming and quickly mad some signs, "Doton: Terra Shield!" A large slab of stone rose out of the ground between Jirobo and Chouji. Chouji quickly smashed through the barrier, and went after Jirobo. However, even Chouji's improved boulder technique was stopped by Jirobo. Tsuneni gasped a little in shock as she witnessed what transpired, Jirobo was covered in strange black markings.

"Self-confident fool!" Jirobo said as he pulled a fist back, "Crumbling Palm!" Jirobo shouted as he thrust his palm into Chouji sending him flying backwards. Tsuneni rushed in to cover for her comrade. She whipped out two kunai and began her circling motion around Jirobo.

"Ronrimaru!" Tsuneni announced as the blur of her body mad a circle around Jirobo. However, before she could launch her series of attacks. Jirobo slammed the ground with both hands sending a shockwave through the area that knocked Tsuneni out of her technique. Tsuneni couldn't keep her feet and tumbled to the ground, the momentum of her own attack sending her crashing into a tree. She didn't have time to react as Jirobo picked her up and flung her in the opposite direction, she impacted a second tree with a sickening thud. Tsuneni suddenly found her breathing labored, and it hurt to move. She was sure Jirobo had just cracked or broken one of her ribs.

"Did you guys know that, when a large group of people get together, there's always at least one person who is trash. That person or people are made fun of and when the time comes are the first to be left behind. That's you two." Jirobo taunted. "The runt and the fat ass."

Tsuneni slowly got back to her feet. A quick glance around and she saw Chouji a few yards away doing the same, he had gotten his pills back out. Both of them looked pretty bad off.

"Looks like I was right. Konoha must be low on resources to be using trash like you on a rescue squad." Jirobo continued taunting.

"No, Shikamaru always believed in me..." Tsuneni heard Chouji whisper to himself. He ate the second, yellow pill. Chouji finished the rest of his statement as a roar, "That's why he let me do this!"

"Good chakra." Jirobo complimented, "But far from the main course."

"Take this fatty!" Chouji shouted as he readied his next attack.

"You're one to talk." Jirobo retorted.

"Partial Expansion Jutsu: Arm!" Chouji extended his arm. However, the blow was quickly caught by Jirobo, who returned the favor with a uppercut to Chouji's jaw, sending Chouji flying into the air.

"You're going to have to do better than that, trash." Jirobo taunted as Chouji lifted into the air.

Chouji quickly regained his senses in mid air, and quickly made handsigns for his newest attack. Jirobo's eyes widened as he saw what happened. "Super Expansion Jutsu!" Chouji grew to the size of a small mountain. Tsuneni stared in her teammate in shock as he grew to epic proportions. Luckily, he landed on the ground a little ways away, so she didn't have to move to get out of the way.

However, Tsuneni was shocked even more when she saw Jirobo lift the gargantuan Chouji up above his head. She could barely recognize him as his mohawk had turned into a full mane of hair, and his skin took on a reddish hue.

"What kind of guy is this, that I have to use the seal at level two?" Jirobo said rhetorically as he hit Chouji with an upward palm thrust. The power of the blow sent Chouji rocketing into the air, and dispersed his Super Expansion Jutsu. Chouji landed hard on the ground before Jirobo.

"This is bad." Tsuneni said to herself. She began to will her body to move. Even with the pain, she had to do something, or Chouji was going to bite the big one. She quickly made her way between Jirobo and Chouji.

"Heh, the second fly returns." Jirobo taunted Tsuneni.

"I think you'll find that I'm more of a bee than a fly." Tsuneni stated calmly as she began to build up what remaining chakra she had left.

"I'll be the judge of that." Jirobo retorted, "You'll make a fine appetizer, come."

"Nagarekomimasu!" Tsuneni launched into her newly learned attack. It had taken her months to learn the technique from her mother. Unlike her other attacks, Tsuneni didn't become a blur, but her arms did. She rushed in and began her attack. Jirobo couldn't react as he was bombarded by blows he never saw. He was being hit in areashe never even saw the blurs go to. Tsuneni was easily landing twenty to thirty blows in the span of a mere second. It hurt, while each single shot wasn't too bad, Tsuneni had to have loaded up well over three hundred blows in the short time her attack lasted.

"I'll give you credit." Jirobo said as he fought the pain, "You are definitely a bee, but..." He raised his hand up and swatted at Tsuneni, "You're still an insect to be swatted away!"

Tsuneni did her best to dodge the onslaught from Jirobo, but the broken rib hampered her movement, and she was tiring. Jirobo feinted with his left then struck out with his right. Tsuneni couldn't dodge, and she absorbed a major blow straight to her midsection. She was blown backwards threw several trees before landing a few dozen yards away. She no longer moved.

"This is the end for you." Jirobo said as he turned his attention back to Chouji, "No enemy can stand against my State Two seal which gives me more than ten times my normal strength. However, using this state takes quite a bit of chakra." Jirobo flexed a few of his muscles, as if he was testing them out, "Alright, let's go."

Chouji got out his last pill as Jirobo grabbed him. "You were just a pawn, a throw-away piece of trash. But don't worry, I'll make short work of those cruel and hideous idiots you came with. Die, you worthless fat ass!" Jirobo shouted as he made to make the final blow. However, before he could, Chouji devoured the last, red pill. Much to Jirobo's surprise, Chouji was no longer there to hit.

"I'm sorry Shikamaru, but it doesn't seem like I'll make it. However, I will finish this guy off." Chouji said to himself as he stood with his back to Jirobo. Jirobo turned to see huge butterfly wings made of pure chakra sprouting from Chouji's back. Chouji began to transfer almost all of his chakra to his left hand.

"Boulder Strike!" Jirobo shouted as he aimed a punch at Chouji's head.

"Useless." Chouji replied as he stopped the attack with his right hand effortlessly. "I'm one hundred times more powerful than I was before." Chouji said as he turned to Jirobo and punched him with his chakra enhanced left hand. Jirobo rocketed backwards into the ground, cutting out a man-sized width of ground for a few dozen yards before skidding to a halt.

"That was for calling me a fat ass." Chouji said as he strode over to Jirobo, "This next punch will be heavier, and it's for insulting my best friend and killing my teammate!" Chouji said has he slammed his fist into Jirobo's gut. The force of the blow cratered the ground and forced Jirobo to cough up an alarming amount of blood. Jirobo's eyes rolled back into his head and his curse mark retreated. Chouji watched as Jirobo's chest stopped moving and the man stopped breathing. Jirobo was dead.

"We won." Chouji stated as his wings dissipated and he stumbled over to find Tsuneni. He found her crumpled against a tree, her chest moving slightly. Chouji was glad she was still alive, though he had thought for sure she was dead. He carefully picked her up and carried her with him. He started making his way back to Konoha, even though he knew he wouldn't make it. However, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. Chouji walked over to a tree that had an arrow scratched into it's bark.

"They believed in us." Chouji said as he collapsed against the trees, Tsuneni small form still in his arms. Chouji lost consciousness before he could see another person get close to him.

* * *

Shikamaru and the remaining members of his squad had quickly resumed pursuit of the Sasuke and his kidnappers. While each of them were worried for the safety of the two they had left behind, each was confidant in the abilities of Chouji and Tsuneni.

Shikamaru was currently in mid leap as a butterfly passed him by, and he suddenly got a very bad feeling. He knew that the Akimichi clans final pill gave their chakra the shape of a butterfly. Was the insect and this bad feeling an omen? Shikamaru quickly cleared his head, these thoughts weren't helping, and he had a job to do.

Naruto noticed the somber expression on Shikamaru's face, "Everything alright, Shikamaru?"

"It's nothing." Shikamaru shrugged off the omen.

Naruto nodded and said nothing further as the team continued on. They continued on their way for around an hour. Finally, Kiba caught a whiff.

"We're getting closer." Kiba announced.

"Something's off." Hinata said from beside the dog tamer, "There haven't been anymore traps. What's going on?"

"We're being underestimated." Shikamaru stated, "They're thinking the big guy is the only one that'll be following them. No one would set traps against their comrades."

"There's nothing I hate more than being underestimated." Naruto said as they sped through the forest.

"That analysis must be accurate." Neji called out from the back, "We're certainly being underestimated. However, this also gives us an opportunity."

Shikamaru nodded, "Let's get them while they are vulnerable." After quickly coming up with a strategy and telling the rest of the team Shikamaru quickly transformed into a copy of Jirobo and went ahead of his team.

"What took you so long?" the effeminate man asked as Shikamaru caught up to them.

"Sorry, it took some time to eat those bastards chakra." Shikamaru said as he impersonated Jirobo.

"Don't be so slow fat ass. Hurry up and carry the coffing, that's your fucking job, you inferior asswipe." the woman spat at Shikamaru.

"Yeah." Shikamaru replied.

"Hey, Jirobo, you're so obedient today." The six-armed man said.

"What?" Shikamaru asked. He had a feeling his cover was blown.

"I'm saying I can't let you carry this coffin, since your not Jirobo." The six-armed man replied as he but his body between Shikamaru and the barrel.

"Damn." Shikamaru cursed while he grabbed a kunai from his pouch.

"Let me handle it this time!" the six-armed man said as he tossed the barrel back to the woman. "Sakon, Tayuya, you guys go on ahead, I'll catch up."

Shikamaru, still in his Jirobo disguise, made to stab the man in the top of his head, but he blocked with two of his six arms. "Jirobo always warned Tayuya for her cursing." the man said.

"I see." Shikamaru said as he dropped the illusion.

"Ninpou: Kumo Shibari!" the man said as he spat a web at Shikamaru and stuck him to a tree. From behind him, six Naruto's sprang up out of the trees, intending on taking out the spider man.

"Don't underestimate me! Ninpou: Kumo Soukai!" the man shouted as he tangled up all the Narutos in a large web.

"Gatsuuga!" Kiba shouted as he launched an attack from the forest floor, hoping to hit the airborne Oto-nin. However, Kiba and Akamaru missed as the man used his webs to spin himself out of harm's way

"You think I'll let you escape?" Kiba shouted as he landed on a tree.

"That's my line." the man retorted, "Check your feet."

"Damn." Kiba cursed as he saw that his feet were entangled in the man's web. "Don't think this will keep me down long!"

Kiba's distraction seemed to work, Neji had jumped out of the tree and was close to landing a fatal Jyuuken strike to the back of the man. However, at the last moment, the man snapped his threads and flew off in the direction Neji had came from. The man then spun a large web and snared Neji with it.

"I'm going to cocoon you here." the man stated as, with a few finger movements, he wrapped Neji tight in a literal cocoon.

Continuing their sequence of attacks, Hinata and Shiroi attempted to bring down the Oto shinobi, only to be caught in webs like the others. Haku also met a similar fate as he tried to pelt the spider man with senbon.

"I told you not to underestimate me, Kidomaru, the smartest of the Oto Four." Kidomaru boasted. As Kidomaru said this, one of the Narutos was desperately trying to cut the web with a kunai.

"That won't work, my web is indestructible and can hold massive weights." Kidomaru said. "How about we play a game, the 'real body game'?" Kidomaru then proceeded to spin a new golden thread that hardened into a metal stronger than steel. "The first one will be the one on the end."

Kidomaru threw a spike made out of the golden web at the Naruto on his far left.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata screamed as she watched the spike impale her love. The Naruto hit poofed out of existence. Hinata dropped her head and tears started to stream from her eyes, she wasn't going to be able to watch this. She had to do something; she reactivated her Byakugan. She quickly scanned the webbing to see that it courses with Kidomaru's chakra. _If it has chakra in it, then the Jyuuken can destroy it!_ Hinata set to freeing herself from the web.

"Next one is this one!" Kidomaru yelled as he threw another golden spike at another Naruto. That Naruto again poofed away.

"What a lucky guy." Kidomaru commented, "I'm going to do two at once this time. It's a fifty-fifty split." He then threw two spikes, each headed for a different Naruto. Both of the Narutos struck disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Ha ha, he's so lucky!" Kidomaru exclaimed, extremely amused, "But this time it has to be one of them!" Kidomaru chucked a spike at another Naruto.

Tears continued to stream from Hinata's eyes as she heard the whole thing. She wasn't watching anymore, she couldn't. She was focused on getting herself free and saving Naruto. She had cut away about half of the web holding her. She cursed herself for not being able to do it faster. Hinata heard the telltale sound of another clone leaving existence, she redoubled her efforts.

"Well, you made it to the end after all." Kidomaru said as he looked down on the last Naruto, "I guess it was pretty fun to put it off to the end, but the game ends here." With that, Kidomaru threw his last spike at the last Naruto.

Hinata let out a primal, wordless scream as she watched Naruto get hit. However, much to her and Kidomaru's surprise, this Naruto also disappeared. Hinata looked around to see Naruto jump up from the bushes to hit Kidomaru in the back of the head. Hinata continued to work to free herself, she was almost there.

Kidomaru just barely registered what was happening in time to turn and block Naruto's punch. He wrapped some web around Naruto's arm as he separated himself from the black and green clad blond genin. He then pulled Naruto toward him, intending to use the momentum of Naruto's fall to aid the impact of his own blow. However, before he could execute his plan, Hinata appeared an cut through the webbing that connected Naruto and Kidomaru. Hinata and Naruto landed on a tree branch a few feet away. In another tree, not far off Neji had freed the rest of the team. Apparently, Neji had realized the same things Hinata had.

"How did you two..." Kidomaru started to ask the obvious question.

"Things made from chakra will be destroyed by simply putting chakra into it. It is meaningless in front of the Jyuuken." Neji stated. Neji then looked at Shikamaru, "Go. Hinata and I are the only ones who can deal with his jutsu. We'll take care of this guy, you all continue with the mission."

Naruto looked worriedly at Hinata. "Hime?"

"He's right, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered, "Neji-niisan and I are the only ones that can fight him. You have to go on and save Sasuke."

"I can't leave you, Hinata." Naruto said.

"I'll be alright, Naruto." Hinata replied, "I'll have Neji-niisan with me. I'll be alright, I promise."

"But..." Naruto started.

"I won't go back on my word." Hinata said, using some of Naruto's words as her own, "That is my nindo."

Naruto looked at her for a moment before nodding his head, "I wonder where you got that from?" Hinata and Naruto shared a small smile and light chuckle before getting serious again. Naruto leapt to where the rest of the team was.

"Alright, let's go." Shikamaru commanded.

"Be safe, hime. I love you." Naruto said to Hinata before leaving.

"You too, Naruto-kun. I love you too." Hinata replied.

"Like I'm going to let you get away!" Kidomaru shouted as he shot a web to ensnare the retreating party with. Neji allowed the web to pass and entangle him before destroying it. It never reached a single member of the remaining squad. Hinata leapt up to the branch Neji was standing on, both had their Byakugan active.

"It's okay." Kidomaru said, "It looks like you are the best on the team." Kidomaru pointed at Neji. "Man, I just can't hold in my playfulness anymore. If I don't play this game little by little, then it'll be a waste. So, I'll play with you two for three minutes before I kill you and go finish off your friends." Kidomaru then began to spit out many small webs, in hopes to snare both of the Hyugas.

Hinata, being smaller and much more flexible than Neji, managed to dodge all of the webs. Neji got hit by one and stuck to a tree, his arms splayed wide.

"One out of two isn't bad." Kidomaru said as he faced off with Hinata. "You two have good eyes, and are talented in using chakra. Emitting chakra from your hands you create a sharp blade and slice through the webbing. This is the Jyuuken Orochimaru-sama spoke of. However, once I make your hands useless, the game is over." Kidomaru then began to spit out more webbing to try and trap Hinata, but again she dodged. Hinata simply bided her time until what she was waiting for happened.

Kidomaru's eyes widened in shock as Neji got dangerously close.

"I'll let you in on a little secret." Neji said as he dropped into the stance for the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms. "It's not just my hands. I can emit chakra from every tenketsu in my body. By the way, it's game over. Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms!"

"Two Palms." Neji hit Kidomaru in two tenketsu in his abdomen, forcing him backwards.

"Four Palms." Neji closed four in the abdomen this time, pushing Kidomaru farther back.

"Eight Palms." Kidomaru was pushed back some more.

"Sixteen Palms." Now Kidomaru was getting close to the tree's trunk.

"Thirty-two Palms." Kidomaru was pushed back against the trunk.

"Sixty-four Palms." As the rest of Neji's strikes landed on Kidomaru, the tree's trunk began to crack and eventually gave. Kidomaru was sent flying through the wood.

It was Hinata and Neji's turn to be shocked as the dust settled and they could see the figure of Kidomaru standing up through the haze.

"How?" Hinata asked of her cousin. However, the answer was quickly revealed as Kidomaru emerged covered in a golden skin. It soon cracked and peeled off of him.

"That was close." Kidomaru said, "I heard that anyone hit by the Jyuuken will have their chakra network shut down. I narrowly escaped."

"Seems like your thread comes from more than your mouth." Neji observed

"My kumo nenkin is a form of metal that instantly hardens when it touches the air and blocks all chakra. You are correct, I can excrete the material from every sweat gland in my body as well as my mouth."

"Neji-niisan, will we have to use it?" Hinata asked of her cousin as she settled into her Jyuuken stance.

"I don't know, Hinata." Neji replied, "We haven't perfected it yet, it could be dangerous. We should pursue other avenues first."

Hinata nodded at that and then Neji and Hinata launched themselves at Kidomaru. However the Oto-nin disappeared before they could close the distance. As they began to search a kunai with an explosive note attached landed in between them. Neji and Hinata dodged in different direction trying to avoid an explosion that never came. However, both were shocked as they watched a volley of kunai and shuriken come at both of them.

"Kaiten!" Neji shouted as he whirled like a top deflecting all the projectiles.

"Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms!" Hinata intoned as her hands became a blur and knocked down all the projectiles.

Neji released a kunai to where Kidomaru was hiding. Hinata followed up with her own a few moments later. Neither found their mark, but they had their target.

"He's a long range type, this could be a problem." Neji said as they started the chase.

"Maybe, but I got something that might help." Hinata replied. Neji cocked an eyebrow at this, but said nothing as they continued to chase down the spider.

Kidomaru activated his cursed seal and made some quick signs as soon as he had put enough distance between himself and the Hyugas. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" A giant spider appeared attached to the bottom of a spider web. The spider then secreted a large sac as the two Hyugas had closed in.

"I'll find the perfect strategy to counter your abilities." Kidomaru said as he sliced open the sac with a golden knife. Smaller spiders began falling to the ground, threatening to surround Neji and Hinata.

Hinata and Neji both thought the same thing at the same time, "Kaiten!" they yelled in unison as they both became tops. However, the spiders were secreting their own webs as they fell and each of the rotations was slowed down to a crawl by the gunk wrapping around them. Neji and Hinata both barely managed to dodge a golden kunai thrown at each of them. However, Hinata didn't dodge completely and took a shallow cut across the arm.

"Neji-niisan!" Hinata shouted as she saw the incoming swarms of kunai and bugs. Neji immediately knew what his younger cousin intended as he threw himself prone at her feet.

"Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms!" Hinata announced the defensive ability again. Since it didn't use the rotation of the Kaiten, Hinata was able to block all of the spiders and blades as they approached. However, there was one she didn't see as it impaled itself in her back. Hinata fell to her knees in pain.

"Hinata." Neji asked in concern.

"I'm okay." Hinata answered. "But I can't keep up much more, I'm running low on chakra."

"Alright, get somewhere safe, I'll cover for you." Neji replied. Neji began to dodge kunai and strike down spiders as Hinata made her way clear. She tried to make herself look as defeated as possible, so their enemy would think she was done. She mad it to some nearby underbrush. Once she was sure she was in the clear, she whipped out a scroll Kiyoshi had given her and pulled out her bow and arrows. She looked back up to see Neji take two kunai in the back and he fell to a knee. However, Neji quickly stood back up.

"Why do you keep struggling? This game is already decided. a scrub in an easy game is meant to be finished quickly." Kidomaru taunted, "You can't beat me."

"Jyuuken!" Neji shouted as he smashed the giant spider above him, ridding himself of the annoyance. However, that maneuver came at a price as several more kunai found home in Neji's back. Hinata was still trying to find the Oto-nin, an arrow nocked and ready to fly. She found him as he was shifting into state two. She watched in horror as his skin turned dark, he grew horns, and his hair and eyes changed color. He then began to create a bow of his own out of his webbing. _This isn't good, what if he's a better archer than me..._

Hinata watched as Kidomaru loosed an arrow, she had waited to long. It was speeding towards Neji. She didn't have long to react as she turned her arrow over to Neji and fired. Luckily she was closer than Kidomaru, and her arrow struck first, impacting Neji's shoulder. The force behind it was enough to knock him out of the way as Kidomaru's arrow sailed wide to the right. Hinata barely had time to react as an arrow came flying at her, she again took up her own bow as she nocked two arrows and let them fly. It was a maneuver she had been practicing, but the double shot was extremely difficult to pull off.

Her first arrow hit its mark and knocked Kidomaru's arrow off course, however it wasn't enough as it left an alarmingly large gash in her bow arm. She couldn't hold up her bow anymore, the arm wasn't strong enough. Her second arrow, missed the target it was aiming for, but still hit Kidomaru with enough force in the shoulder to knock him out of the tree, and if she was lucky the chakra infused into the arrow had disabled that shoulder. Hinata gripped her arm and made her way out to her cousin, who was also up and moving. With as much speed as he could muster, Neji took off in the direction Kidomaru had fallen.

Hinata also made her way over and watched as Neji was attempting to corral Kidomaru into position, she realized that he was wanting to attempt that jutsu. She wasn't sure if she had the chakra left to pull it off or if her arm could handle it, but Hinata moved into position. Kidomaru never saw her.

"You are in our field of divination!" Neji and Hinata announced in perfect unity, "Sixteen Trigrams Two-hundred Fifty-six Palms."

"Four Palms!" Neji landed two shots to Kidomaru's chest, which were mirrored by Hinata's blows to his back. Her arm screamed in pain, but she ignored it, forcing it to obey her commands.

"Eight Palms!" Neji hit Kidomaru four times in the lower abdomen, also mirrored by Hinata's shots to the back.

"Sixteen Palms!" Again Neji and Hinata moved in perfect sync, hitting eight more points from both the front and the back.

"Thirty-two Palms!" Sixteen more tenketsu hit around Kidomaru's heart.

"Sixty-four Palms!" Thirty-two more points double-teamed

"One-hundred Twenty-eight Palms!" Sixty-four more points were attacked from the kidneys to the lungs. Finally, Neji and Hinata saw what they wanted to see. Kidomaru's golden armor had broken before the final attack.

"Two-hundred Fifty-six Palms!" Both Neji and Hinata hit every tenketsu close to Kidomaru's heart, stopping all chakra flow to it. Kidomaru was dead before he hit the ground.

Hinata gripped at her arm again, using that attack had definitely aggravated her injury, and now almost if not all of her chakra was gone. She immediately collapsed. Neji was faring a little better in terms of chakra, but he didn't have a serious wound to worry about.

"Hinata!" Neji said as he rushed to her side and scanned the injury. The attack had sliced open a good chunk of an artery in her arm and was bleeding profusely. Neji took off his head band and tied it around his cousins arm, trying to slow the blood loss so she wouldn't die. He was also worried that she might lose the arm.

"Neji-niisan..." Hinata said weakly.

"Please, Hinata, reserve your strength." Neji said as he held her.

"Neji, please tell Naruto-kun.... I'm sorry... I... couldn't.... keep... my.... promise." Hinata finished as she closed her eyes and went limp in Neji's arms.

"Hinata." Neji said, trying to stir his younger cousin, "Hinata! Imooto!" Neji quickly picked Hinata up. It was his duty to protect her, and he'd be damned if she died on his watch. Injuries and chakra exhaustion be damned, he made his way towards Konoha. He had to save Hinata.

* * *

A/N

Here it is, the first part of the Sasuke Retrieval Arc. Things are a little different, but I hope you liked it.

Also, I want to ask something of all my readers. There are two scenes which I have been wanting to write, but I haven't found the time. So I'm opening them up to a writer's challenge of sorts. I'll give everyone a couple of weeks to write up they're own take on the scenarios. I'll take the one from each category I think is the best and post it here in the A/N section.

Scenario 1: The first date between Ino and Haku. I'm fine with whatever you come up with as long as Naruto is not involved in any way, remember he doesn't know about it when he asks them about it.

Scenario 2: The last time Jiraiya drug Kiyoshi into a brothel. I'm okay with whatever you decide to write about here. Just remember, while I'm thinking about making this an M rated fanfic, it isn't yet. So please keep it T. Other than that go crazy.

Send submissions to c l a u d _ s t a r h o t m a i l . c o m with the title "Four Man Squads Writer Challenge". Feel free to submit as many versions of each story as you like. So get to writing.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed Chapter 13 and that you had a good Thanksgiving.


	14. Chapter 14 Bonds

Four Man Squads

Chapter 14 - Bonds

Naruto, Shikamaru, Kiba, Haku, and Shiroi were catching back up to the last two of the kidnappers.

"I hope everyone else is alright." Haku said as he leapt from a branch he had just landed on.

"I'm sure everyone's fine." Naruto said with his normal smile.

"Yeah, Neji's a genius, and Hinata's pretty good too. Chouji and Tsuneni aren't any slouches either." Kiba answered as they continued on.

Shikamaru still had a bad feeling about Chouji, but he shook it off again, "Anyway, we need to focus on our next encounter, it's five on two. We have a major advantage, we should be able to end it here."

"No, it's six versus two." Kiba piped up as Akamaru barked.

"Sorry sorry, six on two." Shikamaru corrected, accounting for Akamaru.

The remaining squad chased after Sakon and Tayuya for another hour or so before finally catching up. Tayuya was carrying the barrel that held Sasuke, and had currently set it on the ground.

"Finally, we caught up." Shiroi stated as they reached the tree just behind Sakon and Tayuya.

"So what?!" Sakon snarled, "I'll kill all of you!" Like a flash, Sakon charged after the remaining five members of the Sasuke Retrieval Squad.

"He's fast!" Naruto commented as he let fly a kunai to attempt to stop Sakon's charge. However, Sakon just dodged and continued his charge.

"Eat this! Multiple Fists Barrage!" Sakon yelled. Shikamaru and Kiba both moved to intercept the incoming Oto-nin, only to be blasted by fists. Naruto charged up a Rasengan while Kiba and Shikamaru ate the blows. Shikamaru and Kiba flew behind Naruto and each disappeared in a puff of smoke, just as the Rasengan was taking shape. However, before Naruto could tell what happened, Sakon managed to grab his arm and stop the Rasengan from hitting.

"If I grab your hand before you let that thing go, then it's checkmate." Sakon said.

Naruto just smirked as something drilled through his midsection. "Tsuuga!" Kiba yelled as he drilled through the Naruto Shadow Clone, dispersing it. There was only one way for Sakon to dodge the drill, and that was to duck, which Sakon did. However, little did Sakon know, Sakon was not the true target, it was Tayuya and the coffin.

"They placed us in a straight path, so they were aiming for Sasuke" Tayuya said as Kiba sped towards her.

"You think you can get us with some weak shit like that?" Sakon yelled as he chased after Kiba.

Tayuya was going to get out of the way of the Inuzuka when she noticed that her body wouldn't move.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu success." Shikamaru stated from a tree over. Tayuya was locked in the path of the Tsuuga. However the impact never came as Kiba stopped the Tsuuga to land in a handstand on the barrel, flipping over it and taking it with him.

"Tayuya! What the hell are you doing!" Sakon screamed as he descended to the branch Tayuya currently resided on.

"It's not me..." Tayuya managed to get out as she moved directly to where Sakon was going to land. Sakon was moving too fast to dodge, and Shikamaru released his jutsu late enough to where Tayuya wouldn't be able to dodge either. Sakon barreled into Tayuya.

"Catch it!" Kiba yelled as he tossed the barrel to Haku, who did as instructed.

"Nice job!" Naruto shouted.

"All according to the plan." Shikamaru stated.

"Fuckers..." Tayuya cursed.

"Damn pieces of trash." Sakon mirrored her feelings.

"I suggest we get out of here." Shiroi stated as team turned around and made back for Konoha.

However, Sakon released the first level of his curse mark, "You're not getting away!" He shouted as he took of after the team, faster than before.

"He's even faster..." Kiba said, "Akamaru!"

The little white furred dog looked up and barked as he placed an explosive note.

"Hurry up when your done laying the trap!" Kiba instructed his companion.

"Stop howling, you bitch!" Sakon yelled as he turned his sights on the trap-laying dog. Akamaru, recognizing the danger, attempted to get out of the way but his footing on the tree slipped and he ended up stumbling, leaving himself open and dangerously close to the exploding tag.

Kiba, realizing his partner was in danger, diverted his path to rescue Akamaru. Sakon crossed the threshold of the trap just as Kiba reached Akamaru. The exploding tags that Akamaru had laid exploded. The blast blew Sakon and Kiba over a large chasm.

"Shit!" Sakon cursed.

"Oh, what the..." Kiba looked down into the gorge, he couldn't see the bottom.

"Shiroi, take this. I'll go help Kiba." Haku said as he passed the coffin to Shiroi. I'll bring him back." With that, Haku quickly changed direction to go help Kiba. Leaving Shikamaru, Naruto, and Shiroi to continue on. However, Tayuya was hot on their heels.

"Shiroi, Naruto. Get Sasuke back to Konoha, I'll take care of her." Shikamaru said.

"Shikamaru..." Naruto began.

"Go! Hurry!" Shikamaru yelled.

Shiroi never even saw the guy as he landed on the barrel.

"Kimimaro!" Tayuya yelled. Kimimaro kicked the barrel out of Shiroi's hands, and then grabbed it and landed a few branches over.

"Seems like I've miscalculated." Shikamaru said, "Sorry, guys."

"You're too late, Tayuya." Kimimaro said as he stood, "Where are the other three, the ones who were once part of the five?

"Why are you here?" Tayuya asked, "Is your body..."

"I'm not moving with my body anymore, this is the force of my will." Kimimaro stated calmly.

"Damn, with one foot in the grave." Tayuya said, a tone of mild admiration in her voice.

"I can understand a little bit now." Kimimaro said, "This is the perception of an anthology life form, a form of only consciousness, that is no longer bound by the body. It is as if I have touched the border of Orochimaru-sama's dream." Kimimaro then patted the container that Sasuke was in, "This was to be the 'vessel' for that dream, but you were too late."

"Quit babbling senseless things and give back Sasuke!" Naruto yelled as he charged Kimimaro. However, he never got that far as Tayuya jumped in between them and slugged Naruto in the jaw, knocking him away.

Shikamaru watched as Kimimaro whispered something in Tayuya's ear then left with Sasuke. Tayuya then reached into her pack and pulled out a flute.

"Damn it." Naruto cursed.

"Calm down, Naruto." Shikamaru said as he started to formulate a plan, "Alright, Shiroi, Naruto. This is what I need you to do..." Shikamaru said as he laid down his plan.

"I'll clean up you little shits in seconds!" Tayuya boasted.

"Got it?" Shikamaru said.

"Yeah." Shiroi replied.

"Let's rock." Naruto added.

"Come on, trash." Tayuya taunted.

"It's three on one!" Shikamaru shouted as he launched into action, "We've got the advantage on our side. Let's go!"

"Alright!" Naruto yelled.

"Hah! You pieces of trash won't make a difference, no matter how many you have." Tayuya retorted.

"Don't underestimated our teamwork!" Shikamaru shouted as he whipped out a kunai.

"Here we go!" Naruto added.

"Come on!" Tayuya challenged.

Shikamaru took a swing at Tayuya with his kunai, forcing her to block with her flute. "Naruto, Shiroi, now!"

"Eat this, bastard!" Naruto yelled as he sailed up and over Tayuya's head, Shiroi doing the same. They both took off after Kimimaro.

"Shit! You tricked me!" Tayuya yelled, "What kind of teamwork is that you damn bastards!" Tayuya regained her composure just in time to see Shikamaru's shadow try to catch hers, and she quickly leapt away. She landed on a branch a few trees back.

"Seems like you want fall for the same trap twice. I guess I'll have to be satisfied with the fact that they got away. But, remember, Jutsu are not the only weapons."

* * *

Shiroi and Naruto were quickly catching up to Kimimaro as they left the forest and entered a large meadow. They landed a few yards away from Kimimaro as they locked eyes with the sickly Oto shinobi.

"So, how should I cook these two?" Kimimaro asked himself.

"What does Orochimaru want with Sasuke?" Naruto yelled his question.

"Orochimaru-sama already completed the jutsu of immortality. In order to acquire all jutsu and the entire world, he needs time..." Kimimaro answered.

"What's that got to do with Sasuke?" Naruto roared.

"Immortality doesn't necessarily mean immortality of the body." Kimimaro answered, "He must replace his body with a stronger one before the current one succumbs."

"That's what Sasuke's for?" Naruto was beside himself.

"Yes, that is it exactly." Kimimaro answered coolly. He then protruded some bone from the palm of his hand. Naruto made some familiar handsigns. Shiroi stepped back and let Naruto go, he was content to analyze Kimimaro's movements for the moment.

"I won't let you do such a thing to Sasuke!" Naruto roared.

* * *

"You're a fool." Tayuya taunted Shikamaru, "What do you expect to do with just that one technique?"

Shikamaru didn't reply. He was focusing on his strategy.

"From what I can tell, you've had to sacrifice your team little by little to get to this point." Tayuya observed, "Is that Sasuke boy really that important? Wasting a whole team for just one guy, you're a bunch of stupid faggots."

Shikamaru needed time, he knew next to nothing about the girl's abilities, so he had very little to work with. His only option was to talk, "This mission happens to be my first command. Of course I'm worried about having my team reduced little by little, and I'm unsure if the decisions I've made are truly correct or not. If I was a team leader that took responsibility for the lives of his team members, then I would've halted the mission in consideration of my comrades' lives versus the life of one guy. At least, that's what the rule of thumb dictates."

"Then why didn't you abandon the mission?" Tayuya asked.

"Because reality doesn't always follow the rule of thumb." Shikamaru answered, "Obviously there wasn't a single person in my team who would halt the mission and desert their comrade just to save their own hide, myself included. I'm a bum whose favorite pastime is to watch the clouds float by, and the last thing I want to do is lead a team and give out orders. However, if there is something I can do for my team, it is to trust them. I've never thought of them as sacrifices, as you put it. I don't even think they're dead."

Shikamaru then stood up and made the Rat sign for the Shadow Possession Jutsu.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Tayuya shouted as she slammed her hand down on the tree trunk. Three giant beings popped into existence. One of the summons had a very menacing looking club, and another a very deadly set of hand claws. The third seemed to be a mass of bandages.

"I'll play a melody of death for you." Tayuya stated as she lifted her flute to her mouth.

* * *

Haku was relieved when he saw that Kiba had managed to land safely. However, so did the Oto-nin. Now, Haku found himself locked in combat alongside Kiba. There was something off about Sakon's attacks, they passed through blocks, like he had more than one fist. Kiba worked himself behind Sakon as Haku held his attention. Kiba landed what looked like a solid blow to the back of Sakon, but Sakon showed no effects of being hit. Kiba then went flying backwards into a river after landing his blow.

_Something is definitely wrong here._ Haku thought as he tied down one of Sakon's hands blocking his senbon. Haku then quickly began one of the most useful abilities of his Kekkei Genkai, one-handed seals. However, Haku never got to finish as Sakon punched him in the face. Haku never even saw the blow coming and it stopped his signing.

"Gatsuuga!" Kiba shouted as he and a transformed Akamaru became twin drills aimed at Sakon. The attack hit, but, as the dust cleared, Haku could see that both Kiba and Akamaru had been stopped by Sakon and a second set of arms and torso coming out of Sakon's back.

"Don't underestimate us, trash!" Sakon said.

Kiba tried to launch a kick at Sakon, but was blocked by a foot that emanated from Sakon's gut.

"Three on two. A little unfair, eh, Sakon?" the other head said.

* * *

Shiroi had to admit he was thoroughly impressed. He was currently standing in the middle of a large group of Naruto's Shadow Clones. There easily had to be three hundred in the clearing.

"Interesting." Kimimaro said indifferently, "Come."

"I'll crush you!" Naruto yelled as he and the clones charged. Kimimaro dropped into a stance that Shiroi recognized.

"The Camellia stance?" Shiroi stated in wonderment.

* * *

"Multiple Fists Barrage!" Sakon shouted as he punched at Kiba. Kiba managed to get out of the way and watched as the blow hit a rock, blowing it into pieces. However, Kiba wasn't able to dodge the second fore arm that came out of Sakon's elbow and grabbed Kiba by the throat.

"We happen to be good brothers." Sakon said, "My older brother usually sleeps inside of me, but he wakes up to help me out in battle. Ukon can extend any part of his body from any part of mine to help me attack and defend." Then, seemingly to prove Sakon's point, Ukon's head grew out of the side of Sakon's head and then a fist emerged from Ukon's forehead. Ukon then punched Kiba in the head with the first on his forehead.

"Secret Jutsu: One Thousand Needles of Death!" Haku announced his attack. Silently he thanked the gods for allowing the fight to take place near a river so he didn't have to use tons of extra chakra to extract water from the ground and air. The attack launched at Sakon and Ukon, forcing the brothers to let go of Kiba as they jumped out of the way.

"Thanks." Kiba said as he held his throat.

"You're welcome Kiba-san." Haku said as he moved closer to his partner.

"That's interesting, let's see what you can do..." Sakon said. His speech was cut short by a hand across his mouth.

"We are running out of time Sakon." Ukon stated as he activated his second level cursed seal, "Kill them quickly, activate level two."

"You're too hasty, brother." Sakon complained as he complied.

Akamaru, sensing the duos increase in strength, whined at Kiba's feet.

"Damn it." Kiba said.

"What is it?" Haku stated.

"We might have been on equal footing earlier, but, from what Akamaru told me, their chakra just increased tenfold. We are way outgunned here." Kiba stated.

"I see..." Haku replied.

"How do you want them done, brother?" Sakon asked.

"In pieces." Ukon replied.

Akamaru began to bark loudly.

"I get it, Akamaru." Kiba replied, "Haku, I'm trusting you to have our back."

"Of course, Kiba." Haku replied as he unleashed a hail of senbon at the brothers, who easily dodged.

"Alright, Akamaru, let's do it." Kiba said as he prepared to use his newest jutsu.

* * *

Tayuya had unleashed her first level curse mark and had began playing her flute. This, in turn, caused her summons to begin moving.

_She's controlling them with the music. _Shikamaru noticed as he dodged from the giant with the club. Shikamaru had no aptitude for music, but he began to memorize what finger movements on the flute caused which reactions from the giants.

There was one thing Shikamaru was sure of, this was going to be a troublesome fight.

* * *

Haku was doing a decent job of playing keep away from Sakon and Ukon, while keeping them away from Kiba. However, they had gotten in some lucky shots, and Haku was starting to hurt a little.

"Go, Akamaru! Dynamic Marking!" Kiba shouted.

Akamaru launched high in the air dousing everything, except Haku, in urine.

"All right, it's all set!" Kiba yelled as he jumped up into the air with Akamaru and began to sign. "Inuzuka Style: Man Beast Transformation Combo: Two-Headed Wolf!"

Haku stared in slight awe of the aptly named technique. Kiba and Akamaru had turned into a giant two-headed wolf. Hopefully, whatever tricks Kiba had in that form would finish this fight.

"Heh heh heh, all this tension for a bunch of drooling dogs." Sakon laughed.

"Eat this! Garouga!" one head of the wolf yelled as the entire mass began spinning at a very fast rate. Haku watched as the attack hit Sakon and Ukon dead center and sent the brothers flying, ripped in half.

"How do you like that?" Kiba taunted, "Garouga is a move where we spin so fast that we can't even see. Even if the attack doesn't it, its shockwaves can slice the enemy. If you get nailed, you get torn to pieces."

Haku and the wolf watched in shock as the two halves of the bodies began to move and grew new body parts. Both Ukon and Sakon stood up.

"We were thinking about splitting up anyway." Sakon said as he tested out his new appendages, they were black and metallic looking.

"True, it would have been if had gotten hit, but the real fight starts now." Ukon said as he stood up.

"Garouga!" Kiba yelled as he and Akamaru launched their attack again. Both of the brothers dodged out of the way and hid behind rocks.

"There's no use in hiding!" Kiba called out, "I told you we aren't using our eyes! We hunt for the scent, that's why we marked you!"

Sakon and Ukon both bit their thumbs and ran through the same signs, "Kuchiyose: Rashoumon!" The brothers summoned a giant metal wall that had a demon's face painted on it. The Garouga impacted the wall and put an impressive dent in it, but Kiba and Akamaru's attack couldn't get through the wall. The wolf began to fall from the wall as Ukon and Sakon jumped up to finish the job.

Haku reacted quickly and managed to divert Ukon away threw the use of some senbon. However, Sakon was going to get in his shots. Akamaru, realizing what was coming, moved himself into harm's way and dispelled the jutsu, the wolf form not staying if both users were not willing to be in that form, and took Sakon's shot to protect Kiba.

"Akamaru!" Kiba shouted as he descended to Akamaru's fallen form.

Haku kept his eyes on Ukon. If he could keep them apart, Haku felt he could take on each of them. Kiba had retreated with Akamaru with Sakon hot on his trail.

"Brother, I got this one, can you take care of the other?" Sakon called out.

"Yeah, he's small fry!" Ukon replied.

Haku had to thank Kiba, separated these two were much less dangerous than together.

"Hmm..." Haku studied his opponent, "Let's see if your as big and bad as you think you are."

"Don't worry, kid. I'll kill you quick so I can go after that mutt boy." Ukon said as he charged Haku. Haku braced himself for the incoming impact and was ready to block the attack. What actually happened shocked him. He looked at his arm to see Ukon's body merging with his own.

Soon, Ukon was completely merged inside of Haku. Soon Ukon's head was popping out of Haku's shoulder. "How do you like our Kekkei Genkai, the Soma no Ko. It allows me break down my body and integrate it into others. However, I can make pieces that are completely me or completely you. For all intents and purposes, we now share a body. It's a technique especially good for assassination."

"I see." Haku replied as he began to sign. "Let's see how it matches up to my Kekkei Genkai. Secret Jutsu: Crystal Ice Mirrors!" The familiar dome of ice mirrors sprouted up from the ground, water being sucked from the nearby river.

"I don't know what this is, but I'm part of you. You can't do anything to me without killing yourself." Ukon said confidently. However, Haku ignored him as he channeled chakra to his feet and jumped up into the mirror in the center of the dome's ceiling.

It was Ukon's turned to be shocked as while Haku's body entered the ice mirror, his own was rejected. He landed in the middle of the dome. Ukon looked around him to see Hakus in every mirror of the dome.

"What is this? How did you force me out?" Ukon asked, panic lining his voice.

"My Kekkei Genkai allows me to manipulate ice. This ability allows me to merge with these mirrors. Since you do not have my bloodline, you cannot enter the mirrors. Therefore, the ice basically filtered you out of my body." Haku smiled as he was getting ready to say what had turned into one of his favorite phrases, "Now that I have you in my technique, I will show you what speed truly means."

Haku then began the assault on Ukon, however he needed to go help Kiba. Haku was sure that the Inuzuka was low on chakra because of the large transformation and massive jutsu he used. Therefore, Haku quickly switched to shuriken and kunai.

"I'm sorry, Ukon-san. I don't like to kill people, but our dreams are obviously opposed to each other. I will try to make your death as painless as possible. I have to go help my friends." With that, Haku dashed out of one of his mirrors, and using a couple of kunai, quickly decapitated the Oto ninja.

* * *

Shiroi watched as Kimimaro completed the Dance of the Willows, taking out all of Naruto's clones. Shiroi slightly smiled, he had an opponent worth of testing his skills against. Shiroi watched as bones poked sharply out of all of Kimimaro's joints, seemingly being natural extensions of his skeletal structure.

"Bones." Naruto growled angrily.

"This is my Kekkei Genkai, Shikotsumyaku." Kimimaro stated as he straightened h from his crouch and the protrusions retracted back into his body. Suddenly, Kimimaro dropped the left shoulder of his lavender shirt as his shoulder made some sickening cracks. Afterwards, Kimimaro's shoulder opened up and a bone began to come out. Kimimaro grabbed the bone and yanked it out of his shoulder, holding it like a sword.

"A sword made of bone." Naruto commented as Shiroi watched on.

"These are no ordinary bones." Kimimaro stated, "These bones are compressed to maximum density, meaning they are as solid as steel.

"So what? I'll just break those bones!" Naruto roared. Shiroi looked over at the barrel that held Sasuke, it was emanating a sickly looking purple chakra.

"I've mastered the five dances. Don't assume you know all about my powers just by seeing them." Kimimaro answered.

* * *

"You've got nowhere to run, trash." Tayuya said confidently as her summons surrounded Shikamaru.

"You're not bad." Shikamaru stated as he took in the situation, "A well timed series of attacks using all three of them. It must've taken a lot of practice. Looks like it's a pretty complicated melody."

"Impressive, you not only realized that my flute controls these beasts, but you also figured out the complexity of the melody. However, you won't understand the melody entirely." Tayuya replied, amused.

"Of course." Shikamaru agreed, "I'm not much into artsy things." He was quickly analyzing the situation. He still didn't have complete information on what finger movements correlated to which movements of the behemoths.

Tayuya chuckled softly as she raised the flute to her lips once more, "There hasn't been anyone who has heard this melody and lived to tell of it. The ninth verse, 'The Turmoil of the Pandemonium.'"

Shikamaru's eyes widened as he recognized the melody change. He watched as each of the three demons opened their mouths, which were sewn shut. Shikamaru watched warily as blue, ghost-like beings came out of the three giants mouths. The tendrils were covered in mouths as they danced in the air. Suddenly, a small change in the melody, and the tendrils chased after Shikamaru. He dodged as best as he could, but the ghost tendrils were fast, and he couldn't keep up. He took a glancing blow to one of his arms and watched in a mix of shock and horror as the thing ate away at his chakra, never actually harming his physical body. After realizing the things ate chakra, Shikamaru threw two shuriken, hoping to make get some distance between himself and the tendrils. Again, Shikamaru looked on in shock as the shuriken passed straight through the ghosts.

Thinking quick, Shikamaru used a combination of smoke bombs and explosive tags to hide himself. He did a quick tally of the gear he had left and started to formulate his battle plan. He had to deal with Tayuya's troublesome flute or Tayuya herself. Shikamaru pulled out all of his remaining equipment. His life and this fight was to be on the line with this gambit.

Shikamaru launched a kunai with an explosive tag. It wasn't meant to get anywhere near Tayuya, just force her to a better position. It did it's job. Shikamaru followed up with a series of Kunai launched from different directions via the used of wire and bent branches. It forced Tayuya to use one of the giants to block the incoming attacks. Shikamaru admired the scene for a moment, _The pieces are in place._

"You know what the most fun thing in shogi?" Shikamaru asked as he dropped down from above to land on a branch behind Tayuya. Tayuya never noticed the kunai cut the wire holding a flash bomb between her and her behemoths. "It's the part where you get to use your opponent's pieces that you captured as your own." With that said the flash bomb exploded, lengthening all the shadows in the immediate area.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu!" Shikamaru said as he quickly took possession of all three of Tayuya's summons.

"Impossible!" Tayuya exclaimed as she shielded her eyes from the light, "How did you figure out the movement of all three? There's no way you figured out the pattern of the melody."

"I didn't even try to listen to the melody in the first place." Shikamaru said. "There was something else I could read your commands from. It's your fingers."

"That's impossible!" Tayuya retorted.

"Your right forefinger and ring finger with your left middle and pinky fingers, that moves your centerpiece there forward." Shikamaru stated as he referenced the giant with the claws, "The whole time we've been attacking and defending and playing cat-and-mouse, I've been memorizing your finger movements and the correlating actions of these big guys."

Tayuya played a few notes on her flute, trying to make her summons move, but it was no use.

"That's no good." Shikamaru stated, "I've got them good and tight with the Shadow Possession."

"Damn you." Tayuya cursed.

"Now it's my game." Shikamaru stated as he prepared to attack, "My turn to corner you with these pawns that I've obtained." Tayuya just glared at him. Shikamaru continued on, "Not alarmed, are we? Why don't you at least ready you kunai."

Tayuya smirked, "This flute is my only weapon. Don't make me repeat myself, no one has ever heard this melody and lived."

"That's quite a bit of confidence you have there." Shikamaru stated as he launched himself, and the giants by extension, at Tayuya.

In response, Tayuya placed her free hand into a simple seal and shouted one command, "Tai!" At that command, all of the summons dispersed, going back to wherever it was they came from.

Shikamaru faked a look of surprise, everything was going according to plan.

"Too bad you won't be able to use your pawns!" Tayuya taunted as she made ready to attack. However, her plans were cut short as she found she couldn't move her body.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu, success." Shikamaru stated with a grin. "I told you I'd corner you with those pawns. I just used them as a feint. The simplest of all tactics is to feint and land with the second strike."

However, now Shikamaru did look on in shock as Tayuya's skin turned to a darker hue and she grew five horns, forming a crown around her head. "What the..." was all Shikamaru could say.

"You're pretty clever." Tayuya complimented, "But, now cleverness means nothing!"

Shikamaru realized that Tayuya was forcing her way out of the Shadow Possession and that he was going to have to use something more powerful while he could. Shikamaru mad a couple of signs, "Shadow Strangle Jutsu!"

However, the power up was useless. Tayuya managed to power out of the jutsu before Shikamaru could do any damage with it. Tayuya lifted her flute up to her lips.

"Mateki: Mugen Onsa!" Tayuya announced the name of her attack before playing the melody. Shikamaru instantly recognized the effects of genjutsu, and feebly attempted to throw a kunai at Tayuya. The blade impacted a tree between them.

"Hmph." Tayuya snorted derisively, "What are you aiming at?"

Shikamaru couldn't move his body as he felt the genjutsu take a hold. He stayed under the effects just long enough to tell how he should act under the effects of the genjutsu. He then used his shadow to break his forefinger and dispel the genjutsu with pain. He let loose a horrible scream of pain for two reasons. One, he needed to act like he was under the effects of the genjutsu, and, second, breaking his finger hurt like a bitch.

"How do you feel now, being all tied up?" Tayuya asked as she moved in for the kill. She picked up the kunai Shikamaru had thrown, "Die, trash!"

Things, however, did not go as Tayuya planned. Shikamaru shot up, stopped her knife hand with his shadow, and land a strong blow to her gut. Shikamaru grinned, "How many times do I have to tell you? The first strike is a feint, then the most basic thing to do is land with the second blow. Of course, this second blow is different from the first time. The Shadow Strangle Jutsu gets stronger the closer I am to the victim."

"Damn it." Tayuya cursed as she felt the shadow hands crawl up her body, "I got too close."

"That's not where you failed." Shikamaru corrected her, "It was when you said, 'this flute is my only weapon.'"

"It can't be..." Tayuya said in disbelief.

"Yes, I threw that kunai intending to miss. That way, you would pick it up and approach me." Shikamaru finished for her.

"I got to admit you got some guts for a shit head." Tayuya said as she stood there.

"Not only that, but I'm kind-hearted." Shikamaru added, "Striking a defenseless woman goes against my policy, but..." Shikamaru pulled back his fist, "You don't seem, in any way, defenseless." Shikamaru made to plant his fist back into Tayuya's midsection, but she managed to block it through the Shadow Strangle Jutsu.

"Don't think that, by beating my illusion, you gained the upper hand shit head." Tayuya snapped.

Shikamaru quickly redoubled his efforts and forced the shadow to start strangling Tayuya. Tayuya, recognizing what was happening, dug deep inside herself for more chakra and forced the shadow from her neck. With this increase in chakra, Shikamaru noticed the horns on her head grow. _Shit, it looks like I'm going to have to use that jutsu..._

* * *

The barrel practically exploded. Naruto and Kimimaro stopped their fight. Shiroi watched with mild interest as the dust settled. Sasuke was there, but he was different. He looked demonic, his hair grew and his skin tone was too dark. However, all of that changed back to normal and soon the Sasuke of old was standing there with his back to the three fighters.

"Sasuke! Let's head home. These guys kidnapped you, but we came to save you and..." Naruto shouted at his friend and teammate, but he didn't get to finish as he was cut off by Sasuke's laughter.

Naruto was shocked for a moment. _What's he laughing about? _However, Naruto didn't have long to think as Sasuke immediately took off, in the opposite direction of Konoha. Naruto yelled after him, "Sasuke, stop! Damn it, Sasuke!" Naruto then went to take off after Sasuke.

"Useless." Kimimaro said as he appeared behind Naruto. Naruto froze in shock as Kimimaro made to cut his head clean off his shoulders. "Die."

However, the blow never came, as Shiroi had intercepted the bone sword with his own katana in a flash. "Go, Naruto. Something is wrong with him, and only you can bring him back now. Leave this freak show to me. I want to test my swordsmanship against his."

Naruto nodded at Shiroi as he bounded off after Sasuke. After Naruto was clear, Shiroi allowed himself and Kimimaro to disengage.

"And just who are you?" Kimimaro asked Shiroi.

"Shiroi Wangetsu. Son of a disgraced samurai family from the Land of Iron. I'm interested in your kenjutsu style. The Camellia style, correct." Shiroi replied.

"You would be correct." Kimimaro replied, "What style do you use?"

"Rose." Shiroi replied simply.

"Interesting." Kimimaro answered.

Shiroi and Kimimaro looked each other over for a few moments, each waiting for the other to make the first move. They both decided to take the initiative at the same time. Shiroi and Kimimaro met in the middle of their field, metal striking against bone, the beautiful dance of a sword fight taking shape. Neither could gain an upper hand on the other in a straight kenjutsu contest. The two separated, and Shiroi took the time to reach into his pack and grab another scroll, from inside he produced his second katana. In response to this Kimimaro reached into his other shoulder and retrieved another bone sword.

"Should've figured as much..." Shiroi complimented. "I guess I'll have to break out the big guns, eh. Dance of Roses: Orange!" After announcing his attack and channeling chakra to his feet, Shiroi began the first and the weakest of his dances. Kimimaro was fast, and blocked every single strike. Shiroi had to admit he was impressed, he had never met someone who could keep up so easily with the Dance of Roses.

"Is that all you got?" Kimimaro asked in a slightly bored tone.

Shiroi cracked a smile along with a small chuckle, "I'm only getting started."

* * *

Kiba was quickly retreating down the river, Akamaru still bundled in his arms. Sakon had managed to catch up to him and did some weird thing where they had shared a body. Kiba had stabbed himself in effort to kill Sakon along with him, but Sakon quickly left his body. Kiba then quickly took off in a smoke bomb, and left a booby trapped, fake Akamaru in hopes that it would take out Sakon. Unluckily, the trap didn't.

Kiba got out of the water, he couldn't afford to swim much farther with his wound. He walked out into the nearby forest and collapsed beside a tree. He could only hope that help arrived before Sakon found him.

_I wonder how Haku fared with other guy..._

* * *

Shiroi was at a loss. Not even the Dance of Roses: Yellow had done anything to this sickly looking opponent. Shiroi still had more tricks, but how good was this Kimimaro?

"Pitiful, I will show you true swordsmanship." Kimimaro stated as he charged Shiroi, "Dance of the Camellias!"

Shiroi could barely keep track of Kimimaro's blades as he tried to parry with his own. Shiroi had no choice, Kimimaro was just simply faster, "Dance of Roses: Lavender!" Shiroi began his rotation, something Kimimaro was not ready for. Shiroi managed a smile as his lavender-colored, chakra-infused blades hit Kimimaro several times, leaving some sizable gashes. It was nothing fatal, but hopefully it would slow the Oto-nin down. Soon the power of Shiroi's attack launched Kimimaro several yards away.

"Well, that was better." Kimimaro stated as he stood, "Looks like I'll have to use it."

Shiroi watched as Kimimaro's cursed seal activated to it's first state. It looked like a giant tattoo on his chest. Suddenly, Kimimaro lashed out with one of his blades. Shiroi couldn't believe it, Kimimaro had to be twice as fast as he was just a moment before. It was all Shiroi could do to simply take a few shallow cuts to his arms before getting out of the way.

"Damn, you're fast." Shiroi complimented, "I think I might have met my match here."

"So you're recognizing how pathetic you really are." Kimimaro stated.

"No, I still got some more cards to play." Shiroi stated, "I'm just not sure I'll be living through this though. However, I will be taking you down with me."

Kimimaro just snorted at that statement, "I can't lose to trash like you."

"We'll see about that, Dance of Roses: Pink!" Shiroi's entire body was wrapped in a pink hued chakra.

Kimimaro went to strike Shiroi down, but Shiroi easily blocked Kimimaro's blade.

"You're not the only one who can get faster." Shiroi stated as he blurred and then returned to normal, still standing in the same position.

Kimimaro's eyes widened in shock as he felt the cuts open up all along his body. Kimimaro had barely seen Shiroi move. This boy was proving to be quite the challenge. Kimimaro decided that he had to go even higher and end this now. He had to make sure Sasuke went back to Orochimaru.

* * *

Kiba was cursing. Sakon was catching up, and Kiba could hardly move anymore. Akamaru was still unconscious. Kiba just waited as he could smell Sakon getting closer.

_This is it..._ Kiba thought, _I'm sorry Akamaru, I couldn't protect you._

"There you are." Sakon said as he caught sight of Kiba.

All Kiba could do was grin and laugh. This perturbed Sakon a little bit.

"Can't you even scream out like a proper loser?" He said as he rushed in to punch Kiba. Kiba couldn't move to dodge or even block and ended up taking a shot to the jaw. However, Kiba never stopped laughing.

"Stop laughing because your about to die!" Sakon shouted as he made to punch Kiba again. However, this time his blow landed on a sheet of ice.

"Sorry for making you wait, Kiba." Haku said as he stepped out of the ice mirror.

"Where's my brother?" Sakon asked.

"He's dead." Haku said, "Regrettably, our dreams could not be reconciled together so I had to kill him."

Sakon looked angrily at the former rogue ninja, "Damn you!"

Haku easily dodged Sakon's blows before retreating into an ice mirror. "I'm sorry, Sakon-san, but you'll meet your brother soon. Sakon looked around as he was encased in a dome of ice mirrors. There was nothing he could do as he was peppered by a variety of thrown weapons. Senbon, kunai, and shuriken all cut and tore at his skin. Then just as he had done, Haku ended the battle painlessly with a decapitation.

Haku then went to check on his friend.

"Are you okay Kiba?" Haku asked.

"Yeah, I'm alright." Kiba answered weakly. He winced in pain slightly from his self-inflicted stab wound.

"Let's tend to your wound, then we'll see where we can go from there." Haku offered. Kiba nodded and allowed Haku to take off his leather breastplate and lift up his mesh shirt to expose the wound.

"Hopefully, the others have recovered Sasuke." Haku said as he set to work cleaning and dressing the wound.

* * *

Shikamaru was in a rough spot. He still had Tayuya snared in his Shadow Strangle Jutsu, but he was quickly running out of chakra. He was desperately trying to think up his next series of moves, but nothing short of help arriving would save him from certain defeat here.

Shikamaru sighed as he felt the Shadow Strangle Jutsu fade. He had ran out of time and he didn't have any sort of decent plan. Shikamaru really couldn't do anything more as the jutsu fell and Tayuya made to strike him down with his own kunai. However, before the blade could fall, Shikamaru felt a gust of wind and watched as Tayuya was launched into the forest.

"Who did that?" Tayuya shouted as she grabbed a hold of a tree a few yards away.

Shikamaru looked at his savior in shock as she landed in front of him, her fan completely open and held behind her.

"Allies of Konoha, shinobi of Suna." Temari said.

"I'd heard we had signed a new treaty with the traitorous Suna, but it's hard to believe you'd change sides just like that." Shikamaru said to Temari's back

"We didn't willingly attack Konoha, it was an order." Temari stated, "The same reason why I'm here to help you. When did you turn into such a dim-wit anyway?" Temari said the last with a small smirk on her face. Truth was, she kinda liked the lazy genius, and she liked to tease him. "So you just going to give up this time?"

"No." Shikamaru replied as he stood up, "It'd be troublesome to be protected by a woman."

"Still blabbering on about that man and woman crap, I can tell it's just bravado." Temari retorted.

"So you're with Konoha now, indecisive aren't we?" Tayuya said as she raised her flute back up.

"She uses genjutsu with the sound of her flute." Shikamaru informed Temari.

"Roger." Temari acknowledged.

Tayuya began to begin her tune, but Temari was having none of it.

"Cyclone Scythe Jutsu!" Temari shouted as she unleashed a large windstorm. The force of the wind disrupted the air the melody was riding on, preventing the song from reaching Temari's ears. The attack then managed to level a small amount of the forest. Tayuya didn't reappear for a few moments.

"She must be hiding." Shikamaru stated.

"Did she run away?" Temari asked.

"Doubtful." Shikamaru replied.

"Can you give me a brief analysis of this chick's abilities and fighting style and inform me of the current situation?" Temari asked again.

Shikamaru sighed, "Yeah. She uses her flute to play a melody that traps her opponent in genjutsu. After snaring the target, she uses the opportunity to increase her physical attacks. A standard long-range genjutsu-based strategy. Since she's seen your jutsu, and she realizes it's a bad match for her abilities, she probably won't come out of hiding until her genjutsu is already in place."

"Sound, huh?" Temari said more to herself than to Shikamaru.

"Yeah, the main point of genjutsu is to affect a person's five senses. Sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch, out of all of these genjutsu dealing with hearing are the worst. If she decides to hide and keep out of sight, we won't know when or where she will strike, and, by the time we track her down by the sound of the flute, we'll be ensnared in her jutsu." Shikamaru said as he cracked his broken finger into place. He'd have to put a splint on it later, but just straightening out should help for now. He continued on with his explanation, "If you ask me, we are at a disadvantage. If this keeps up, sooner or later we'll be caught in her genjutsu. We should retreat for now..."

"Who the hell asked for your opinion?" Temari cut him off, "I simply asked for an explanation of the situation. Don't underestimate my power." Temari then took a bite out of her thumb spreading the blood across her fan, "If you think you can hide using the distance of the sound of your flute, you're too naive. Kuchiyose: Kirikiri Mai!" Temari then unleashed another gust of wind, but this time a weasel with a large scythe was riding the winds. Shikamaru had to shield himself from the devastation, and as soon as he dared to look up from his arms he saw that Temari had leveled the forest for acres. There's no way Tayuya was escaping that.

"How's that?" Temari said happily, "It's over."

_What a scary woman. I think she might be scarier than mom..._ Shikamaru though as Temari turned around and gave him a big smile.

Shikamaru sighed, "Where's the rest of your team?"

Temari looked at him, "We came across some more of your friends as we rushed here. Chiyoko stopped to help that fat kid, Chouji I think, and the small girl, Tsuneni. We later came across two of those pale eyed Hyuga, the older one was almost ready to pass out from chakra exhaustion, and the younger female had suffered a rather critical wound. Kankuro stayed to help them get back to Konoha, the girl is in desperate need of medical attention. I, of course, stopped to help you, and Gaara went on ahead."

"It wasn't supposed to happen like this." Shikamaru stated. Apparently everyone was in bad shape and he didn't even know the status of Kiba, Haku, Shiroi, or Naruto. He blamed himself for it. If he had just came up with a better plan, everyone would be coming home.

"Come on, you can sulk later. We need to check on your friends." Temari stated.

Shikamaru nodded, and turned with her to leave, but they were stopped when they heard some groaning coming from below. Shikamaru took a quick look around to see Tayuya laying under a felled tree.

"Well, she's a tough bitch." Temari said.

"Yeah, she survived a forest landing on her." Shikamaru noted.

Temari jumped down to the forest floor, ready to deliver the finishing blow with her fan.

"Wait!" Shikamaru shouted as he landed beside her, "Don't kill her, she could have some information. We could use her alive."

Temari looked at the Oto-kunoichi, "Fine, play it your way." With that, Shikamaru and Temari lifted Tayuya out of the debris. Temari and Shikamaru then began to drag Tayuya's unconscious body back to Konoha.

* * *

Shiroi was cursing. He was slowing down, and Kimimaro just seemed to get faster. He had mastered the Dance of Roses: Red yet, and he might never get the chance to. The pink aura surrounding him was beginning to flicker in and out of existence as he running out of chakra. Shiroi lashed out with his blades, but it was futile. Kimimaro was too fast and too good. Shiroi watched in horror as his guard slipped and Kimimaro took advantage. There was a blade coming at his head, and Shiroi could do absolutely nothing to stop it. The world slowed down as Shiroi watched his end descend upon him.

However, Shiroi's story was not to end today as a sudden explosion of sand pushed Shiroi away from Kimimaro.

_Sand? That's..._ Shiroi thought as he looked over his shoulder. There stood Gaara of the Desert, sand pouring out of the gourd on his back.

"What are you doing here, Gaara of the Desert?" Shiroi asked.

"I owe a debt to a friend." Gaara replied in his usual monotone.

"I see... I assume you want to take over." Shiroi answered.

"Yes, I will finish it." Gaara said.

Shiroi shrugged, "It's all yours. I was outmatched and out of chakra anyway. I kills me to say it, but you got a better shot than I do. Be careful, he can manipulate his bones to attack, he can manipulate them at will."

Gaara was silent. Kimimaro just looked at the new arrival. He lifted his hand, the points of his finger bones poking out of his skin.

"Digital Shrapnel!" Kimimaro said as he shot his fingertips at Gaara. The fingertips met Gaara's defensive sand and after drilling into the sand a good ways, dropped to the floor uselessly.

"Gaara of the Desert, as your name states, you use sand." Kimimaro observed as he made ready another round of Digital Shrapnel. However, Gaara was planning on giving Kimimaro the chance to fire off another round as he lashed out with the sand. Kimimaro deftly leapt over the first strike quickly launching his second volley as he did so. Like the first time, the bullets impacted Gaara's sand shield and dropped to the ground. That was the last attack Kimimaro got for a while as he had to focus dodging Gaara's sand.

"What an idiotic name." Kimimaro said as he dodged, "You can't do anything unless you have sand." Kimimaro then looked around to see a bunch of small clumps of sand hovering in the air.

"Sand Shower!" Gaara said as the small clumps of sand descended on Kimimaro. Kimimaro attempted to dodge, but looked in mild annoyance as two tendrils of sand kept him fastened to the ground.

"But, if I have sand, I can do anything." Gaara replied as the sand began to cover Kimimaro, "Sand Coffin!" Gaara held his hand out at Gaara fist opened.

After the sand completely covered Kimimaro, Gaara clenched his hand, "Sand Burial!"

Shiroi winced slightly as he recognized the attack that had taken Rock Lee out of commission for over a month now.

"You're the foolish one." Gaara said to Kimimaro as blood began to leak out of the sand, "It doesn't take any effort for me to make sand out of rocks and the minerals in the ground."

"Did you get him." Shiroi asked.

"Not yet." Gaara replied.

Shiroi watched in shock as Kimimaro forced himself out of the Sand Coffin. Parts of his skin were completely gone, and underneath Shiroi could see nothing but bone.

"Those bones... He's another monster." Gaara stated.

"Yeah, his body is definitely a boatload of problems." Shiroi answered.

"What pressure." Kimimaro said as he emerged from the sand, "If I hadn't made these bone masks right under my skin, I would have been crushed. I took you too lightly, but your sand will never catch me again."

In response to this, Gaara began to gather a lot of chakra and a lot of sand, "Sand Tsunami!"

Shiroi looked on in amazement as a large tidal wave of sand emerged from in front of Gaara and made it's way towards Kimimaro. There was no where for the Oto-nin to go as he was assaulted by obscene amounts of sand.

"That had to have got him." Shiroi stated.

"No." Gaara replied as he placed his palms on the sand as it settled, "Giant Sand Burial!" The ground shook as the sand crushed whatever was inside of it.

_Damn, what power..._ Shiroi thought as he watched on from the sidelines.

"How persistent." Gaara commented as he raised up from the ground. Shiroi looked over into the sand to see Kimimaro crawling his way out. Gaara quickly responded wrapping up Kimimaro in another Sand Coffin and quickly crushed him in another Sand Burial.

Kimimaro exploded from the Sand Coffin, but he looked different. His skin tone was darker, and he had a tail and six spikes on his back made of bone. Shiroi looked on, and the only way he could think to describe Kimimaro was that the Oto-nin looked like a dinosaur of some sort.

Kimimaro charged at Gaara. In response, Gaara slammed a palm to the ground and created a wall out of the sand. However, it wasn't enough as Kimimaro exploded through the wall and into Gaara, knocking the sand user through the air. Gaara landed rather roughly a few yards away.

"Is this the limit of your vaunted 'perfect defense.' What a shame." Kimimaro stated. Kimimaro's eyes widened as he noticed sand start to fall from Gaara's body. Kimimaro quickly regained his cool, "But, of course, you were covered in sand to begin with."

Shiroi decided to use this time to try and end this here. He mustered the strength to swing his blades at Kimimaro's head. Kimimaro blocked the strikes then lased out at Shiroi with his tail. Luckily for Shiroi, Gaara was on top of things and a shield of sand appeared to stop the tail from landing a serious blow. Shiroi was propelled a few feet away as the sand expanded to get him out of harms way.

_He's not quite as fast as before..._ Shiroi noted as he landed.

"Your sand is really starting to annoy me. You will be the first to die, Gaara." Kimimaro said as he leveled his gaze back on Gaara. Kimimaro then reached behind himself and began pulling out his own spinal column. Shiroi could hardly believe it, how could he do that, even with a Kekkei Genkai.

"Dance of the Clematis: Vine!" Kimimaro called out as he whipped out his spine at Gaara. Whip was an appropriate term because that's exactly how the thing acted, like a giant whip. Gaara defended with his sand as the spinal cord wrapped itself around him.

"Flower!" Kimimaro said as a large drill head of bone materialized on his other arm, "This is the thickest bone I can produce. It will easily pierce through your pathetic defense of sand."

"Absolute Defense: Shukaku's Shield!" Gaara announced as a large wall of sand that looked like a tanuki rose up between him and Kimimaro. Unperturbed, Kimimaro drove his lance arm into the shield, determined to break through it. The drill managed to dig through the shield for a few moments, but soon Kimimaro's bones were cracking. Then suddenly, about half way through the shield, the lance shattered completely.

"It's indeed solid." Kimimaro said as he watched his ultimate attack shatter.

"From underground I collect the strongest minerals. I then use chakra to compress them into a dense sand that surrounds me." Gaara explained, "Your abilities indicate that you carry a Kekkei Genkai."

"The Shikotsumyaku, from the Kaguya clan, is now my ability alone." Kimimaro answered

"You're the last of a clan. That means your clan will pass forever from this earth today." Gaara stated.

"Yes, because of my body's illness, I won't last long. But that destruction will never happen, for I am not alone. Since I am fulfilling Orochimaru-sama's dreams, I will stay in Orochimaru-sama's heart forever." Kimimaro stated with fervor.

"Orochimaru has brainwashed you." Gaara stated, "You're soulless." Gaara then began to call upon his chakra once more and began to sink Kimimaro deep beneath the earth. "You will sink to a depth of two hundred meters. There you will be held, and with the pressure of the sand on your body, you'll be unable to move a finger."

"Okay if that doesn't finish this..." Shiroi started to say.

"Dance of the Fern!" Kimimaro shouted from under the earth and created a literal forest of razor sharp bones. Gaara managed to save himself and Shiroi by putting them up on floating disks of sand.

"Damn it, he's one tough bastard." Shiroi stated.

"Yes, but it's over now. He will not come back out." Gaara stated.

"It's not brainwashing! It's all my own reasoning!" Kimimaro shouted from behind them. Gaara and Shiroi turned to look in shock as Kimimaro's body protruded from one of the bones, "What the hell would you know?!" However, the death blow never came as blood poured from Kimimaro's mouth.

Shiroi looked as the still body of Kimimaro before reaching out and poking it with his sword. "He's dead... finally." Shiroi stated.

Gaara slowly floated them clear of the forest of bones and they rested against the trunk of a tree.

"We would've been completely defeated there, wouldn't we?" Gaara asked.

"Yeah, but you know what they say, sometimes it's better to be lucky than good." Shiroi replied.

"He was the same as Naruto." Gaara said as he looked at the deceased form of Kimimaro, "Getting angry at someone insulting an loved one."

"Yeah, I guess he was in a way." Shiroi stated, "But he chose to follow a bad dude."

"But it doesn't matter, good or bad, no one can defeat loneliness." Gaara said.

Shiroi looked over at Gaara, "I guess you're right."

* * *

Naruto rushed after Sasuke as he entered an area he remembered vaguely from his history lessons at the academy. He was standing on top of the head of Hashirama Senju while Sasuke was standing on top of Madara Uchiha. They were at the Valley of the End.

"Sasuke!" Naruto called out. Sasuke just stopped where he was at for a few moments before continuing to wherever he was going.

"Hey, where do you think you're going? Konoha is the other way!" Naruto shouted, "Don't tell me you're running away to Orochimaru!"

"What if I am, idiot?" Sasuke replied, finally turning to face Naruto. Naruto could see the first stage of the curse mark active along Sasuke's face, changing the color of one of his eyes.

"What happened to changing yourself, you bastard?" Naruto asked.

"I have my own path to walk." Sasuke replied. "Orochimaru has given me the power to walk that path. I need to be with him, not here playing childish games with you all. Go home, Naruto." Believing his part said, Sasuke turned to continue the journey to Orochimaru's hideout.

However, Naruto was not done, and used a chakra powered jump to launch himself at Sasuke. Naruto landed on the Uchiha with full force. Both of them skidding along the ground. When they finally came to a stop Naruto rocked Sasuke with a punch to the jaw.

Sasuke spat some of the blood brought up from the punch at Naruto. Sasuke looked at Naruto, "Have I gotten any stronger with my comrades?" Sasuke asked, Naruto just looked at him shocked. "I'm going to Orochimaru." Sasuke said.

Naruto gripped Sasuke's shirt and pulled him close, screaming into his head, "That bastard killed the Sandaime and tried to destroy Konoha! You think he's just going to give you power for free? He just wants to use your body as a container. You might not come back! You might get killed! I won't let you go to a place like that!"

"I don't care." Sasuke replied, "All I want is to accomplish my goal."

"No!" Naruto roared back, "I'll bring you back by force if I have to."

"Now that I think about it..." Sasuke said, "We've never had our fight."

Naruto looked down at his friend, "This isn't the fight I wanted..."

"Why should I care what you want?" Sasuke replied as he lifted Naruto up into the air with one hand. Suddenly, Sasuke released Naruto and punched him straight in the gut. Naruto couldn't believe the power as he went rocketing into the river below.

_What power.... _Naruto mused as he sunk into the river. However, Naruto knew he couldn't stop now, everyone had came this far and he had promised Sakura to bring Sasuke back. Naruto would keep his promise. Naruto made his way to the surface and climbed on top of the water, using chakra to keep himself above the water. Naruto then launched himself up at Sasuke, who was also coming in fast from up high. The two met midway. Naruto attempted to punch Sasuke, but the Uchiha dodged the punch and hit Naruto in the face with a kick.

As Naruto flew backwards from the attack he made a familiar sign, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" One of the clones dug into the nearby statue with a kunai and the others grabbed the ankles of the one before it, creating a long chain of Narutos that ended in the real one. The chain whipped forward propelling Naruto into a massive kick that hit Sasuke in the face. Sasuke went speeding into the statue of Madara.

Naruto landed on Madara's fingertips, "Did that wake you up?"

"I've been awake since I came out of that coffin. I awoke from a foolish dream that I could live in a future with comrades drunk with the assurance of peace." Sasuke replied as he stood. Suddenly Sasuke flashed over to where Naruto was and punched him in the gut again, sending Naruto flying off the statue.

"The future is not where my dream is." Sasuke stated as Naruto hit the water below, "It's in the past, where it always will be."

Naruto resurfaced a few moments later. He stared up at Sasuke, "It seems your serious about this. Damn."

"Yeah, I'm serious." Sasuke said, "I intended to kill you."

"Am I no longer your friend?" Naruto asked. He felt hurt at that revelation. Even though he would never admit it, Naruto had looked up to Sasuke as a kind of big brother ever since getting put on the same team. "Everything we did together as Team 7, is it all meaningless to you?"

"No." Sasuke replied, "It was not meaningless. To me, you have become my closest friend."

"I became your friend? Then why do you want to kill me?" Naruto asked, thoroughly confused. However, he didn't know about the requirements to activated the Mangekyo Sharingan.

"Because it is that bond that makes it worth killing you." Sasuke replied. His Sharingan was active now, reading all of Naruto's movements.

"I don't get it, but it seems you're serious about killing me." Naruto said as he clutched his fist. Soon both genin were throwing themselves at each other again. Each of them threw a punch that was caught in the off-hand of the other. They disengaged and Sasuke used the moment to grab a kunai out of Naruto's back pouch and threw it at Naruto. Naruto countered by getting a shuriken out of his hip holster and threw it so it hit the kunai and both fell into the water.

Naruto was caught off guard as Sasuke connected with a flip kick to Naruto's chin, causing Naruto to skip along the water. Sasuke hung upside down, smirk on his face.

"You said it yourself, you want this fight. There's no one here to stop this, I will kill you." Sasuke said as he ran through some hand signs, "Katon: Yari Daikage!" Naruto made his own seal as Obito's staff of fire appeared in Sasuke's hands.

"I'll beat the sense back into you Sasuke!" Naruto shouted, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" A single clone popped into existence and began attacking the air around Naruto's palm. Starting the Rasengan.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as the chakra sphere coalesced in his hand. Then the clone grabbed Naruto's free hand and spun the blond around and released him on a path towards Sasuke. The flame spear met the spiraling chakra in a clash of wills. The flames were sucked into the Rasengan as it expanded. Soon, the area occupied by the attacks explodes sending both combatants flying away from each other.

Naruto floated along the surface of the water while Sasuke was on a knee dozens of yards away. Naruto looked sadly at his friend as he began to stand up. He could feel water flowing along his face, it was warmer than the water of the river.

"What happened to you, Sasuke?" Naruto asked his friend, "What about those things Obito-sensei said to you.

Sasuke's eyes widened when Naruto brought up Obito's words. Was he truly becoming like Itachi? Was he allowing Itachi to ruin his life again? He knew revenge wouldn't make him happy, but could he really do what his cousin did and find a new family?

Sasuke felt the power of the first stage curse mark flow over him as he cleared his mind. This is what he wanted, what he had always dreamed of. He wanted, no, he needed this power.

"Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Sasuke announced as he launched a series of fireballs at Naruto. Naruto jumped out of the way of the flames, just as Sasuke wanted. Sasuke followed up with a kick to Naruto's head while the blond was defenseless in the air. Naruto went crashing back into the water.

Naruto was lost in his memories of his friendship and rivalry with the Uchiha as Sasuke continued to kick the ever living daylights out of him. Naruto was suspended in the air, held by the neck, as he felt the anger rise from within him as he thought of how Sasuke was doing this to a "friend." He could feel the red chakra of the Kyuubi flow through him.

"It's too late for that!" Sasuke said as he made the Chidori in the hand not holding Naruto up, "Chidori!"

Blood mixed with water as it poured from the wound in Naruto's shoulder. The Chidori had struck into Naruto's right shoulder, and Naruto now found himself impaled on Sasuke's arm. Naruto's left hand rested on Sasuke's arm as they remained there.

"You prevented me from hitting your heart, but it's pointless. I've stabbed through your right lung." Sasuke said as he removed his arm from Naruto's flesh. "Your right arm is useless now, and it's difficult to breathe. You can't use jutsus or that technique either. Sasuke grabbed Naruto around the neck as he intended to finish it. Suddenly, a single question flashed through Sasuke's head.

_Will you become like Itachi?_

Sasuke tried to force his cousin's voice from his head, but it wouldn't go away.

_Will you betray Naruto like Itachi betrayed you?_

_Yes damn it! I need the power to kill him, no matter the cost._ Sasuke screamed into his own mind. Two simple words were the reply.

_Itachi wins._

Sasuke screamed in rage. He dropped Naruto into the river. He didn't know what he wanted anymore. He wanted to kill his brother, he had wanted for so long and so much that he could taste it. He could feel that moment when he finally stripped the final breath from his damned brother. But now, Obito and Naruto had shown him a life he thought he had lost. He had friends, and there was the distinct possibility he could find love, something he hadn't felt since his mother died on that day. He was conflicted, before him lay two paths. One contained all his friends and his cousin. He could see the end of that path, the revival of the Uchiha clan and his happiness. The other path held nothing but darkness, but with that darkness came immense power, and at the end of that path laid his brother's dead body and the fulfillment of avenging his clan. Sasuke never even noticed the now healed Naruto approach him from behind.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he planted the ball of chakra into Sasuke's back. Sasuke shouted out in pain as the sphere shredded his flesh and then rocketed him into the canyon wall.

"Sasuke!" Naruto called out from the river, "You will not go to Orochimaru! I will stop you, even if I have to break your arms and legs to do it!"

Sasuke looked up in pain at the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. Naruto wasn't doing this for himself or because he wanted to. He was fighting to save Sasuke. Sasuke realized this, this was the bond they had forged. Naruto needed to do this so Sasuke couldn't give himself to Orochimaru. It stirred something in him, something he thought he had lost long ago.

"Thank you, Naruto." Sasuke said as he stood back up.

Naruto looked at him curiously, "What's wrong now Sasuke? I thought you were going to kill me."

"Not anymore." Sasuke said. "I'm sorry, Naruto. I've been a pretty horrible friend. I do want to change, but it's just so hard. I'd like to give it another shot."

The Kyuubi's chakra dropped from Naruto as soon as it came. Naruto sighed in relief as he went to help his friend. "Well that's good. It's good to have you back."

Sasuke smiled, "You're still an idiot."

Naruto smiled back, "Yep, same old Sasuke. Anyway, how do we call this. I mean you got my lung with a Chidori, and I got you in the back with a Rasengan. By all rights, we probably should both be dead."

Sasuke laughed and coughed up a little blood, "How about a draw?"

"I can live with that." Naruto replied, "Let's get you back home, so Grandma Tsunade can fix you up. I wonder how everyone else fared."

"Everyone else?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah, a bunch of us came to rescue you." Naruto replied, "However, we had to split up to fight your kidnappers. I just hope Hinata-hime is okay."

Sasuke looked down at that. He didn't know what had happened, but if Naruto lost Hinata because of him, would Naruto ever forgive him? Hell, could he ever forgive himself?

* * *

A/N

And thus the Sasuke Retrieval Arc closes, and we finally reach the major divergence point I wanted to get to. Things will be major changes from here on out in comparison to the canon. So if you were reading this hoping for a canon retelling with a small spin, then this might probably be the end of the road for you. I'm sorry if this displeases anybody, but this is how I was planning for everything to go since the very beginning, and it's the way I want it to happen.

cr8zyboy: Thanks for the compliment, and don't worry. Sakura will be playing a bigger role soon, just wait for it.

Ree Nakada-chan: Your review made me laugh a bit, so thanks for that. I'm not sure if I helped or hurt you though, you needed to study. Either way, I'm glad you like the story. And yes, Haku and Ino do make a cute couple, just think about it.

sashu: Glad you liked, and I can't fault you for watching a great anime, that I can't.

Captainof10: Maybe, maybe not... only time will tell. I liked Neji and Hinata's battle too, by the way. I think out of all the revamped fights so far it's one of my favorites


	15. Chapter 15 Aftermath

Four Man Squads

Chapter 15 - Aftermath

Naruto half-carried, half-dragged Sasuke through the forest. The Rasengan to Sasuke's back had apparently done a little more damage then either had thought. It felt like hours had passed since they had finished their fight. Naruto was worried out of his mind, He wondered where everybody else was. They had all been right behind him.

Sasuke also found himself worrying for other reasons. Would he be accepted back? Could he continue on as he had when everyone found out he had tried to defect? What would his... friends think? Sasuke chuckled at that, he had never worried about such things before.

"Something funny?" A voice called out from above them.

Naruto and Sasuke both looked up to look into the face of Obito. Obito looked down with at them with a grin.

"I see you reached your decision, Sasuke. But not without a price." Obito said as he descended from the tree.

"Yeah, he won't run my life anymore." Sasuke replied.

"Good to hear it." Obito answered.

"Obito-sensei, how's everyone else?" Naruto asked.

Obito looked down at the blond genin, a touch of sympathy in his eyes. "The night before you left Tsunade-sama put in a mission request to Suna for aid. Gaara and his team showed up to help most of your squad. Tsuneni has several injuries, including multiple broken ribs, a concussion, and a dislocated shoulder, but nothing life threatening. Chouji, however, is in critical condition. He devoured his family's secret pills and they are eating away at his body, the Hokage is currently working on saving him. Chiyoko from Gaara's squad brought them back. Neji is alright, he has a few kunai wounds, but nothing real major. I hadn't heard anything about Gaara, Shiroi, Haku, Kiba, Shikamaru, or Temari..."

"What about Hinata?" Naruto asked excitedly. She just had to be okay, she promised.

Sasuke also looked at Obito expectantly. As much as he used not to care, he did now.

Obito sighed and a small frown crossed his face, "I don't know how to tell you this, Naruto. But... She's not doing good."

"What's wrong with her?!" Naruto shouted worriedly.

"Well, she suffered some wounds like Neji's, but she also took a very serious wound to the arm. It hit her artery in her arm, nearly severing it. She's in critical condition. Luckily, Kankuro found her and Neji and helped get them back to Konoha quickly. All I know before I left to find you is that she's being prepped for surgery and Neji is currently donating his blood to help her live. Shizune is taking care of her." Obito answered.

Obito watched sadly as tears streamed down Naruto's whiskered cheeks. "Oh gods, please let her live." Naruto said despondently to no one. Sasuke could do nothing but look sadly over at his friend and teammate. He couldn't help but feel it was his fault.

Obito walked over to Naruto and placed a reassuring plan on Naruto's shoulder. Obito could sympathize with the genin, there had been a few times he had thought he had lost Rin and it never got easier. "I'm sure she'll be okay Naruto. Shizune is a top rate med-nin, second only to Tsunade herself. I've seen the procedure done before, and as long as nothing unexpected happens, Hinata should be okay. Now, we need to get home. You have a girlfriend to go see right?"

Naruto perked up a little at Obito's pep talk. However, he was just wanting to get home so he could check on Hinata for himself. Naruto began half-carrying half-dragging Sasuke back to Konoha again.

"How about I take Sasuke?" Obito said amusedly, trying to lighten the mood at least a little, "I think we'll make it back a lot faster."

Naruto simply nodded and handed Sasuke over to Obito and then immediately took off for Konoha, not waiting on the Uchihas. Obito secured Sasuke on his back before taking off after his other student.

* * *

Tsunade was currently digging through a rather large notebook retrieved from the Nara clan ranch. It had detailed information on the Akimichi food pills. In front of the desk she was using, Chouji was lying in a bed wrapped in paper seals and being given a constant stream of nutrients intravenously in attempt to slow down the degeneration of his body long enough for her to stop it. She looked through the Nara research extensively before turning to her mortar and pestle.

"I need an antler!" Tsunade called out to the med-nins assisting her as she reached for some of her more common medicinal herbs. This was going to be tricky. One slight miscalculation in her formula, and Chouji would be in a bad way.

Tsunade set pen to paper as she began to work on the antidote to save Chouji's life.

* * *

Shikamaru was waiting outside of the room where Chouji was being worked on. He was fidgeting nervously. His broken finger had been put in a splint to heal on its own, the medical staff had other matters to attend to, and rightfully so.

"There's no use in fidgeting." Temari called out from the other side of the hall. She was sitting there alongside her other female teammate, Chiyoko. Shikamaru recognized her from the restaurant incident with Chouji from the days before the final rounds of the chuunin exam. She was wearing tan shirt cut off slightly above her navel and tan pants. Shikamaru, however, couldn't keep his mind on anything but Chouji, and the others that had come back injured. He knew everyone was okay except for Chouji and Hinata, and he didn't know the status of either Naruto or Sasuke.

"Sacrifice is an inevitable part of missions. Didn't you get any emotional training?" Temari continued on. Shikamaru just glared at her. The woman was just so damn troublesome.

"Training and actual combat are different. In a mission, you don't know what's going to happen. I was a team leader for the first time on this mission. Because of that, I understand that I'm not cut out to be a ninja." Shikamaru answered.

Temari just looked at him coldly before responding, "Unexpected fragility... Men are strange."

With that Shikamaru simply got up and started to walk away. He really didn't feel like dealing with her shit at the moment. However, he had one more thing to say, "I shouldn't have been the team leader this time. I just relied on everyone else. I was laid back... I didn't have enough strength...It's all my fault."

"What? Are you afraid of getting hurt?" Temari said to his back. Shikamaru just looked at the ground for a moment before walking away. He barely noticed his father leaning against the wall around the corner.

"Shikamaru, you're being talked down to by a girl and running away?" Shikaku asked his son.

"I don't want to have a troublesome argument, because I'm not a girl." Shikamaru responded.

"True, but you're not a man either." Shikaku answered back, "You're just a regular coward. Even if you quit being a shinobi, missions will still occur. Someone will have to carry them out. Your friends will just go out with a new leader. So then, maybe your companions will die, but, if you're the leader, maybe they won't meet that fate. If you look at this as a learning experience, maybe you can carry out your next mission with less problems. If your friends are really important to you, then before you think about running away consider that you may become greater their sake. That's what it means to be a true friend, you coward."

Just as Shikaku finished his rant the door to Chouji's room creaked open and Tsunade stepped out.

"Everything's alright." She said as she plopped down on the bench Shikamaru was sitting at. "The continuous degeneration effect of the pills has been stopped by the antidote that I created. Chouji is saved, it was a success. The Nara research on the pills and the drugs that could counter them was very useful. The manual was very impressive. The result of continuous study?"

"Thank..." Shikaku started to say.

"Tsunade-sama!" Everyone turned to see Shizune sprinting down the hallway, "Hinata Hyuga's condition is stable, she'll make a full recovery. Also there's other news, Obito Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, and Sasuke Uchiha arrived in the village just a short while ago. Sasuke Uchiha has a moderate injury to his back, but otherwise everyone is okay."

"So they got him back." Tsunade mused to herself, "Shikamaru, it seems your mission was a success and everyone made it back alive. Good job."

Shikaku watched as his son shed tears. "Next time," Shikamaru said, "I'll do it flawlessly."

* * *

Naruto blasted through the streets of Konoha. There was only one thing on his mind. He had to see if Hinata was alright. He quickly took to the rooftops to avoid all the normal traffic. The only other people using the rooftops were ninjas in some sort of rush, and they were aware enough of others on the roofs that he didn't have to worry about hitting them.

A few minutes after entering Konoha proper, Naruto dropped down in front of the main entrance into Konoha Hospital. He ran through the doors and into the lobby. He ran up to the receptionist.

"May I help you?" The young woman asked him as he approached. Naruto noticed the look in her eye, that look that she would rather be anywhere than dealing with him, but he ignored it for now, he had much more important matters to worry about.

"Is Hinata Hyuga okay? Can I see her?" Naruto asked hurriedly without giving the woman a chance to answer his first question.

"Hinata-san is okay, she just got out of surgery. However, her visitors are restricted to only family members until her condition improves. So I'm afraid you cannot see her." The woman answered, a touch annoyed.

"But, I am family!" Naruto argued, "I was adopted by Hiashi-sama about a month and half ago. I'm her adoptive brother!"

"I'm sorry. But I haven't heard of such a thing." The receptionist replied, "Besides, everyone knows that the Hyuga clan has never adopted anyone."

"Come on, I have to see her, please!" Naruto pleaded, "I need to see that she's okay."

"I'm sorry, but family members only." The receptionist stood her ground.

Naruto looked down at the tile floor dejectedly when he heard a familiar voice call out from the nearby hallway.

"He is family." Neji said as he strode up to the desk. He was wearing nothing but a hospital gown and had a mobile IV tower along with him.

"Neji-san, you're supposed to be in bed." the woman said in concern.

"I know, I'm sorry. I just needed a walk to clear my head, and to visit my cousin. Luckily, I heard your conversation with my new cousin here. I can vouch for his story. Hiashi-sama did indeed adopt Naruto, and he is a member of the Hyuga family." Neji stated.

"I see." the receptionist replied, "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, Naruto-san. You may go see her. Room 119. Now for you Neji-san, will you be going back to your room, or do I have to call a nurse?"

"I'll head back to my room, calling a nurse will be unnecessary, sorry to have worried you. Come, Naruto, you can walk with me to Hinata's room, mine is beside hers."

Naruto nodded at Neji and both of them walked down the hallway towards Hinata's room.

"How is she?" Naruto asked.

"She is alright, now. It was pretty touch and go for a while, though. After the res of you left, the Oto ninja we fought turned out to be a long range specialist. I have to admit, Hinata ended up doing most of the fighting, I was at a disadvantage since our family's jutsu and fighting style are all close range. She probably saved both of us in that fight. Right before the end of the fight she took a serious blow to her right arm, she was missing a large portion of it before the med-nins restored it. Her blood loss was severe, and I was exhausted and unable to get her here in time. If that puppet using Suna nin hadn't showed up, she probably would have died. I think she believed she was going to die. She even told me to tell you something when I next saw you." Neji talked while he and Naruto made their way down the halls to room 119.

"What was it?" Naruto asked. He was doing his best not to cry. He was proud of his love. He knew that she had long cursed herself for being weak, but she was one of the strongest people he knew, even if she didn't recognize it.

"That she was sorry for not keeping her promise." Neji relayed the message.

Now Naruto did start to break down. Even while she was dying, her thoughts were about him instead of herself. If Naruto had any doubts that she loved him, they were gone now. "Thanks, Neji." Naruto managed to say.

"Think nothing of it, cousin." Neji said with a rare smile. He could see the concern in Naruto's eyes. Neji hadn't been a particularly nice person to Hinata, or any of the rest of his family, until Naruto had shown him the light. Now, he was willing to give up everything to make sure that Hinata was protected and happy, just like his father had told him to do. As far as Neji could tell, Hinata's happiness seemed to be directly connected to Naruto, and his to her. Both of them seemed happier with the other than at any other time. Neji breathed easier knowing that Hinata's wellbeing meant as much to Naruto as it did to himself.

Their conversation ended there as the two of them reached Room 119, with Neji's room, 120, right across the hall. Naruto quietly opened the door to Hinata's room and walked in. Everything was pretty standard, Hinata had an IV inserted into her right arm and she was hooked up to various monitoring equipment, just to make sure nothing abnormal happened. Naruto looked around the room to see a small collection of flowers in a vase on the table by the bed. They were white, with white filaments protruding from the center ending in dark red anthers. Naruto had no knowledge of flowers or their meanings, so he didn't know that these were pear blossoms, a flower that wished for health and hope. Naruto only knew that someone had been in here before him. He assumed it was Hiashi and/or Hanabi. Neji said he had visited, but there's no way he could have gotten flowers while cooped up in the hospital.

Naruto pulled up a chair to sit beside Hinata's bed, he took up her left hand in his and felt the exhaustion of the last day wash over him. He quickly fell asleep in the chair, her hand in his, his head resting on the bed beside her.

* * *

Sakura rushed to the hospital. Sasuke was back. Ino had found her and told her that the squad sent to retrieve him had returned. She didn't know what exactly had happened, or what condition anybody was in, but it seems they were all at the hospital. She hoped everyone made it back okay, but she couldn't keep her mind off of Sasuke. She knew Ino was going to see Haku. Sakura was glad Ino fell for the pretty boy they had brought back from their mission into the Land of Waves. It meant that Sakura was pretty much all by herself in pursuing Sasuke.

She made her way into the hospital and walked up to the receptionist.

"Hello, How may I help you?" the receptionist asked.

"I'm looking for Sasuke Uchiha." Sakura said.

"Room 213, he's currently allowed visitors." the receptionist said.

"Thank you." Sakura said as she hurried off. The receptionist nodded and went back to her work.

Sakura made her way over to the stairwell and quickly bounded up the stairs, not wanting to waste any time in getting to her love. She quickly found Room 213 and knocked on the door before entering.

"Come in." Sasuke called out. Sakura complied as she entered his room. She was mildly surprised to see Obito in his room as well, leaning against the far wall.

"I'm sorry, am I interrupting something?" Sakura asked.

"No, it's fine. We had just finished." Obito said as he got off of the wall, "I'll check up on Hinata and Naruto for you Sasuke. I'm sure they're fine though. Take care." With that, Obito left the same way Sakura had entered, leaving Sakura and Sasuke alone.

"I'm glad you're back." Sakura said as she took a seat in a chair beside Sasuke's bed, "But why are you in the hospital, they didn't hurt you did they?"

"No." Sasuke said, "Naruto hit me in the back with a Rasengan."

Sakura was outraged, "I'll kill him. Why did he attack you. You were the one being kidnapped..."

"Shut up, Sakura!" Sasuke shouted at her. The sudden outburst had its intended effect and quieted the fiery, pink-headed kunoichi, "I was running away at the time. Naruto caught me, and I fought him. It's nothing for you to get worked up over. In fact, he had every right to kill me, I was certainly going to kill him." Sasuke ended up looking out the window.

"W-what? Why would you kill him?" Sakura asked. "Why did you want to run away?"

Sasuke sighed, this was to be the beginning. He figured once his friends figured out what had tried to do he would be an outcast, he was already pretty much a traitor. At least he'd have Naruto, "Listen to me, Sakura. I'm going to tell you something that no one outside the Uchiha Clan knows. There's another level to the Sharingan."

"Another level?" Sakura asked.

"Yes." Sasuke affirmed, "The Mangekyo Sharingan, and to unlock it, there is only one condition."

"What is it?" Sakura prodded.

"You have to kill you best friend." Sasuke replied dryly, "That's why I wanted to kill Naruto. I almost did it, too. I stabbed him right in the chest with a Chidori. If it wasn't for the Kyuubi, he would be dead."

"Why... Sasuke-kun, why?" Sakura said as she began to tear up.

"For the same reason I wanted to run to Orochimaru at the time. I wanted power. The power to kill my brother, to avenge my clan. I didn't care what I had to do, I just wanted, needed to be able to kill Itachi." Sasuke said.

"We can help you." Sakura replied, still tearing up, "You don't have to do everything by yourself, you know. We're here we can help you."

"I know that now." Sasuke said, "After I stabbed Naruto, I could remember the things Obito had said to me after I had chased you out of the hospital after picking that fight with Naruto. He shares a lot of the same experiences, but he got over his need for revenge with his new family and his friends. I can try to do the same. However, I'm not sure if everyone will accept me now, since I basically attempted to betray the village."

"Well, Naruto accepted you, didn't he?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, he is my best friend after all." Sasuke said.

"Well, then you have two of us on your side, at least." Sakura stated.

"You mean..." Sasuke started.

"Of course, dummy." Sakura replied, "I love you, Sasuke-kun. If I had to, I would leave here with you, as long as I could stay with you."

Sasuke smiled as he looked into Sakura's green eyes, "Thanks, Sakura-chan."

Sakura sat stock still. She had never heard him use a suffix with anyone, much less an affectionate one. Her mind raced and shut down at the same time. So many incoherent and incomplete thoughts ran through her head.

"Sakura-chan?" Sasuke looked at her worriedly. Sakura had just seemingly spaced out to him. His voice, however, brought her back to her senses, and she did the only rational thing she could think of at the moment.

She glomped him.

"Oww..." Sasuke reacted immediately. The sudden addition of Sakura's wait sent a surge of pain through his injured back.

Sakura quickly returned to her senses, remembering that he was injured, "I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun." She made to get off of him, but his arms wouldn't allow her to leave.

"It's fine now." Sasuke assured her as he held her close, "I know I've been a introvert, Sakura-chan. I just always thought I could only obtain true power on my own. Naruto and Obito showed me that friends and loved ones are what give us true power. So no more, I want to get to know everyone, and I want you all to get to know me. Starting with you, Sakura-chan..."

Sakura felt herself freeze again, did he mean what she thought he meant? Did he want them to be a couple? "Sasuke-kun?"

"Sakura-chan, the thing is..." Sasuke was really wishing he was as good with girls as Naruto seemed to be, "I want to know...if...um....you would like to go out with me, you know, on a permanent basis. Like boyfriend and girlfriend." Sasuke mentally kicked himself, he felt like a total retard, and he was sure he sounded like one.

Sakura stared at him in shock for a moment before finally coming up with her reply, "I'd love to, Sasuke-kun. It's all I've ever wanted."

Sasuke smiled as she buried her head into his chest. He could feel the dull, aching pain in his back, but he ignored it. He was focused on this moment, and the belief that he could have what he lost on that fateful day. Maybe this was his chance to find love again and change his life for the better.

* * *

Chouji woke up to see a semi-familiar face in his room. He noticed a shogi board that had an unfinished game laid on it, so he knew Shikamaru had been here at some point.

"Oh, you're up." the girl said. It took Chouji a few moments before he finally placed her. It was the Suna kunoichi from the restaurant that he had challenged to an eating contest.

"Yeah, what happened?" Chouji asked.

"Well, you apparently used some super secret, forbidden technique or something that made your body literally eat itself." Chiyoko informed him, "Luckily for you, I found you and stopped the damage long enough for your Hokage to save you."

"You saved me? What about Tsuneni?" Chouji asked, worry tinting his voice. The last he saw of her, her broken form was being cradled in his arms.

"She suffered a laundry list of injuries, but she's alive, and she'll pull through with no serious injuries." Chiyoko answered, "And, yes you could say I saved you."

"Why? What are you doing here?" Chouji asked. It wasn't that he wasn't happy to see her, it was just unexpected. Last time he had seen Suna-nins they were invaders bent on destroying Konoha.

"Your Hokage put in an job request to help in the retrieval of a Sasuke Uchiha." Chiyoko replied. "My team was the one sent."

"Then why are you visiting me?" Chouji asked.

"Well, last I remember, we still had challenge to finish." Chiyoko said, but she wouldn't look over at Chouji. She didn't want him to see the blush on her face.

"I see, so you're waiting until I'm release so we can have another contest." Chouji reasoned, "I accept, you'll never out-eat me, little girl."

"I told you back at the restaurant, I could eat circles around you, big boy." Chiyoko replied as she turned to face him and planted a index finger into his chest.

Chouji laughed, "We'll see about that." Chiyoko grinned and sat down beside his bed. She was trying to find something to say to the boy. The day she met him at the restaurant, she had been impressed. She had never met someone that could keep up with her eating. She had found herself thinking about the boy after meeting him. She had to admit to herself, she had a crush on the boy.

Chouji liked the girl. He had told Shikamaru as much the day he met her. She was the first person, other than Naruto, that Chouji had met who could eat as much as he could. He hated to admit it, but he was close to giving up in their first challenge a few months ago. However, as much as he liked her, she was from another village. Could she, or he, manage a relationship like that?

The two of them sat there in relative silence. Neither of them really sure how to broach the subject of asking the other out.

"Just ask her out already, Chouji." Both of them heard a voice from the door, "It's going to be too troublesome if you two keep acting like that."

"Shikamaru..." Chouji said as he watched Chiyoko quickly turn her head. He had just barely caught the hint of a blush on her face.

"Besides, I'd like to have some company if I'm really going to go out with that scary Suna woman. She's troublesome..." Shikamaru mused.

"You mean Temari asked you out?" Chiyoko asked.

"Yeah..." Shikamaru replied, "She wouldn't take no as an answer either. I swear she's scarier than my mom."

Chouji grinned, then looked at Chiyoko, "How about it? Wanna go with me, Chiyoko?"

Chiyoko looked back at Chouji, happiness blatant in her eyes and expression, "I'd be happy to, Chouji-kun."

* * *

Tsunade stormed through the ANBU headquarters, she was making her way through the medical ward of the detention center. She was happy that Shikamaru had the forethought to capture one of the Oto-nins. Now that the retrieval squad had all been taken care of, she wanted to personally interrogate this one. She knew Ibiki was really good at her job, but she wanted to hear what Orochimaru was up to first.

She boomed into the room that Tayuya was currently receiving medical attention in. The Oto-kunoichi had been in a pretty bad way when Shikamaru had brought her in. The first thing they had to do was heal her. Now that Tayuya was recovering, and the doctors said she was okay for interrogation, Tsunade was leaping into action. She closed the door with a resounding slam, which startled the restrained and sleeping kunoichi.

"What the fuck are you doing, you crazy bitch?" Tayuya shouted at the intruder.

"I'm Tsunade Senju, the Godaime Hokage, and I'm here for your interrogation." Tsunade replied.

"What the fuck makes you think I'm going to tell you a damn thing." Tayuya said with a smirk.

"Because I control your fate." Tsunade stated icily, "Depending on if you give me answers and how much I like them, I could just kill you, or sentence you to a life of nothing but hard labor, or maybe I can give you a chance at a life, even if you don't deserve it."

"Bullshit, You wouldn't let me go. Not that it matters. Orochimaru will burn this damn place to the ground, especially since he's got Sasuke." Tayuya replied. She knew Kimimaro, and she was sure he had accomplished the task, he always did.

"I'm afraid your mistaken. Sasuke has been returned to us." Tsunade answered honestly.

Tayuya didn't believe her, "You fucking lie. Why else would you want to talk to me? You lost Sasuke, and you want me to tell you where he went. Well do whatever the hell you want to me, it couldn't be any worse than what Orochimaru would do if he found out I ratted him out."

"Fine. Whatever." Tsunade said, "If you won't believe me, and you won't cooperate, then I'll just leave you here, your trial is in a couple of months. I'll make sure you pay the price for your crimes." With that said, Tsunade made for the door.

Tayuya began to second guess herself. She knew that Konoha ninjas held their friends and comrades above all other things, and would go to great lengths to retrieve or save even just one of their own. So, why was Tsunade so willing to just give up. Either she was bluffing, or they really had retrieved Sasuke. Kimimaro had been sick, had he died before completing the mission?

"Alright, damn it." Tayuya said. She was in Konoha now, she should start worrying about her own skin. "What the fuck do you want to know?"

"Where is Orochimaru's hideout?" Tsunade asked.

"He has multiple hideouts, I haven't seen them all. I'm sure as soon as Sasuke didn't show, he switched complexes. He moves between them every month or two." Tayuya answered.

"Damn." Tsunade cursed. "What was your intentions with Sasuke?"

"We were just told to get the damn boy out of Konoha. Originally, we thought he would come with us willingly, but something changed and we ended up having to kidnap him. Orochimaru didn't tell us what he needed the boy for though." Tayuya answered.

"You know, you're not making it easy on me to make a case for you being a cooperative criminal." Tsunade said.

"What the fuck do you want me to do?" Tayuya screamed, "Sugar coat the damn thing and tell you what you want to hear? I'm telling you what I know, you fucking bitch!"

"Then tell me something useful!" Tsunade roared back, "Do you know anything of any importance?"

"All I can tell you with certainty is that he's weak, extremely weak. Not just him, but Oto as a whole. We four were his personal bodyguards, and his strongest warriors, outside of Kabuto. If we are gone, he doesn't have anyone much above chuunin level. Does that help your fucking cause?" Tayuya answered.

"Yes, that's at least some decent information. How many ninja does he have?" Tsunade continued on.

"From what I could tell he's got at least a hundred loyal ninja, then a few hundred 'experiments' that he would unleash." Tayuya answered.

"Experiments? What kind of experiments?" Tsunade inquired.

"From alterations and failed versions of the curse mark to trying to create artificial Kekkei Genkai." Tayuya answered.

"How dangerous are these experiments of his?" Tsunade asked.

"Well, they range from low genin to high jonin in terms of threat. However, Orochimaru would have little to no control over them. A few, at least, would turn on him if given half the chance. Some others are wild cannons, they just want to kill whatever is close to them." Tayuya answered.

"That's enough info for now. Enough for me to come up with a plan now, anyway." Tsunade said.

"What are you planning?" Tayuya asked.

"If you have to know, I'm going to end that snake and Oto once and for all." Tsunade said.

Tayuya perked up at this, "So you're going to take him down? I want to help. You've got to let me help."

"Orochimaru is your master, isn't he. You really expect me to believe that you'd turn so easily on him?" Tsunade said.

"After what he did to my family, I'd be more than happy to kill the bastard." Tayuya exclaimed.

"What he did to your family?" Tsunade asked.

"I wasn't always part of his little fucking gang. I used to be happy. I was a part of the Kurashikku Clan, a small ninja clan in the Land of Rice Patties. We were a fairly peaceful clan, we focused on creating illusions through the sounds of instruments. However, that changed when Orochimaru and his damn cronies came along. They destroyed us. I watched helplessly as my family was taken away, used for gods know what horrible experiments, and I was branded with this damn mark. I've hated that motherfucker for years, but I never could act against him. I'd die before I'd even have a chance, and I never had a chance to run away." Tayuya said. Despite her tough exterior, she began to break down reliving her painful past, "This is a chance I've waited for. I've wanted to be able to get away from him since he destroyed my home. A chance to take part in his downfall would mean a lot to me..."

"I see..." Tsunade said as she mulled the situation over. "I tell you what I can do. If you agree to become a Konoha ninja, I'll see about putting you on a team when we go out to finally cook that snake. However, it won't be easy."

"I'll do whatever I have to do to get back at that bastard." Tayuya replied.

"Good. From what I hear, you're a chunin level ninja. But I'm going to start you out at the ground floor. I'll give you a genin rank and see about putting you on a team at some point. Sadly, we don't have any spots available, and I really don't want to put you on a brand new squad. So you'll be doing odd jobs and filling gaps where needed. Also, since you were a violent enemy and kidnapped one of our own, I'm going to have you under constant surveillance for a long time. If I so much as hear tell of you looking at somebody wrong, I'll bust your ass straight to Konoha's jail, and we'll see how you like breaking rocks for hours on end." Tsunade informed her.

"I'll do anything. I don't care." Tayuya affirmed. "I'll be fucking good little girl if that's what it takes."

Tsunade laughed, "So be it. I'll see about getting the paperwork done. Tayuya Kurashikku, allow me to welcome you into Konoha."

"Yeah, yeah, what the fuck ever. Can I go back to sleep now, I feel like shit."

"Sure, get some rest." Tsunade said as she exited the room. _I hope I made the right call with this one, and that wasn't just some sort of elaborate act. I know Orochimaru has spies in Konoha, I hope I just didn't add another one._

* * *

_Am I dead? It's so dark, not what I thought the afterlife would be like_. Hinata thought. Her mind was cloudy. The last thing she remembered was feeling the darkness overtake her, and telling Neji to tell Naruto that she was sorry she couldn't keep her promise. She then registered something holding her left hand, and she could feel warm air hitting her skin in the same place every few moments. That's when she tried to open her eyes.

The sudden brightness coming from the room blinded her for a few moments. She waited until her eyes adjusted to the light before looking around the room. Either the afterlife was a hospital or she had survived somehow. She looked to her left to see a familiar lump of blond hair. She sobbed as she realized he was here for her.

"Hinata-hime?" Naruto asked sleepily as her sobs woke him from his sleep.

"I-I'm... sorry...N-Naruto-kun." Hinata said in between sobs. She was refusing to make eye contact with him, "I'm t-too weak... I couldn't keep... the p-promise."

Naruto grabbed her head with his hands, forcing her to look at him. "Hinata-chan, listen to me, you are not weak. You did what you had to do to keep Neji safe as well as take down that spider guy, that took strength, lots of it. You promised me that you'd be alright, and from what I can see, you kept it. Sure, you might be a little worse for wear, but you're okay."

Hinata stared into his calming blue eyes for a while, drinking in his confidence in her. If he thought she was strong, then that was enough for her. She was about to thank him for the words, but she never got the chance as he smashed his lips into hers. She wasn't expecting it, and she froze. She could feel herself blushing before she actually began to return his affections. The stayed in that state of bliss until the need for air brought them out of it.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata said breathlessly, "Thank you."

Naruto looked at his girlfriend questioningly. "For what, Hinata-hime?"

"For being my strength." Hinata replied seriously, "I don't know if I'd be this strong without you, Naruto-kun."

Naruto gave her his most winning smile, "You've always had the strength, Hinata-chan. You just needed someone to show it to you. If anyone should be thanking someone, it should be me thanking you. You've given me something I never knew I was missing in my life. I might be your strength, Hinata-hime, but you are my soul."

Hinata blushed even deeper, "Naruto-kun..." She didn't have any words to say though. Luckily, she didn't need any more as Naruto kissed her again. She melted into him, as she did almost every time he touched her. It was all she had ever dreamed for, to be this close to him, to be his.

Naruto never knew that he needed this so much. He had always thought he had what he needed. Sure the villagers were a pain at times, but he had friends and people who cared for him. This was different. He never knew how much love meant to people or how much it would mean to him, until Hinata came along. Now that he had this feeling he never wanted to lose it. He never wanted to lose her, he'd probably go insane if he did.

"If I didn't approve of you, Naruto, I would kill you right now." Hiashi's voice called out from the doorway. The two lovebirds immediately broke contact, similar blushes rising across both their faces.

"Anyway," Hiashi continued on with a smile, "Congratulations on a successful mission. From what I hear you two did very well. Especially you, Hinata. Neji informed me that without you, that fight could have ended very badly. More importantly, however, how are you?"

"I'm fine, father." Hinata answered, "Although, I'm surprised to be alive. I thought that I was definitely going to die."

"You would have if it had not been for the Suna squad that Tsunade-sama hired." Hiashi stated, "They found you and one of them brought you back here as hastily as possible."

"What about Neji-niisan?" Hinata asked.

"He's fine, he's in the room across the hall, recuperating from chakra depletion and the weakness that comes with donating blood." Hiashi informed his daughter.

"Donating blood? Does that mean..." Hinata wondered aloud.

"Yes, he gave you his blood while they fixed your arm. You had lost so much, Shizune was afraid they were going to lose you from the blood loss. Therefore, Neji stepped in and let them set up a transfusion between him and you." Hiashi stated.

"I'll have to thank him the next time I see him." Hinata said to herself.

"That's unnecessary." Neji called out from the door, still dragging his IV tower around.

"Neji-niisan! Are you okay?" Hinata asked.

"I'm fine. Better than you, anyway." Neji said, the statement got a rise out of Naruto, who laughed slightly. "It is my duty to protect you, Hinata. So no thanks are needed."

"But..." Hinata argued, "That doesn't matter. Duty or not, I should still thank you. Because of you, I am alive."

Neji looked at her, pondering what he should say, "Then, I guess you owe me one."

"What?" Hinata asked.

"You owe me one. A favor, or something of that sort. Isn't that how these things work?" Neji replied.

"Yeah, I guess so. So what's the favor?" Hinata asked.

"One thing. When you become the clan head, stop the practice of the Caged Bird Seal." Neji said.

Hinata smiled, "I was already planning on doing that, Neji-niisan."

"Besides, I already promised you I'd change the Hyuuga when I became the Hokage!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Just making sure I'm covering my bases." Neji shrugged, "Besides, if you do this, then I will owe you much more than I could ever repay. No matter, how many times I save your life. You will give the branch families that which we've been wanting for a long time. Freedom."

"It's a promise." Hinata said with a nod.

"And we always keep our promises." Naruto chimed in.

"It's our nindo." Naruto and Hinata ended in sync with each other.

Hiashi could do nothing but smile. If this truly was the future of Konoha and the Hyuga clan, then Hiashi couldn't wait to behold the future.

* * *

Kiba had just been called to the Hokage's offices. He didn't know what was going on, or why he was called, but he could certainly wonder.

_Maybe I'm going to be getting a promotion for my awesome skills. Or maybe it's a secret mission only I can do. Yeah, that's gotta be it._ Kiba wondered as he strolled into Ninja Ops.

Akamaru barked excitedly a couple of times, getting Kiba's attention.

"Yeah, boy. I can't wait to see what mission we get either. It's gotta be something cool." Kiba replied.

Akamaru yipped loudly in agreement from atop of Kiba's head. Kiba continued on his way until he came to the door of the Hokage's office. He knocked a couple of times. He noticed Shizune, working at the paperwork lining her desk.

_She's kinda cute..._

"Come in." Tsunade called out. Kiba quickly made his way into the room, and made sure not to ogle the Hokage's breasts. He had done that the first time he had been called here for a mission assignment. His team had been sent out on basic patrol duty, security had been bumped up since the whole chuunin exams incident. Anyway, he was still nursing a few bruises from that encounter, and he didn't want a repeat.

"You called for me, Hokage-sama?" Kiba asked.

"Yes, I have a mission for you, Kiba." Tsunade answered.

It was then that Kiba noticed the other person in the room. It was one of the Oto-nin that he had to chase down just a few days ago.

"What's she doing here?" Kiba asked, slightly angry. _Not that I should really complain, she's kinda hot..._

"I've been talking to Tayuya quite a bit over the last few days, and I have decided to give her asylum and a position in Konoha. So as of now she is a Konoha shinobi, albeit on probation." Tsunade answered, "Your mission is to escort Tayuya around Konoha so she can familiarize with the town. Also, I shouldn't have to tell you this, but you're also to familiarize yourself with her scent. Just in case she decides she doesn't want to be a good girl."

"I told you, I'll do whatever it fucking takes." Tayuya said.

"Tayuya, I am your Hokage now. You will address me with respect, understood." Tsunade snapped back angrily.

"Hai, Hokage-sama. Sorry, Hokage-sama." Tayuya replied, her heart obviously not in it.

Tsunade took a couple of breaths to calm herself, "Do you accept, Kiba?"

"Sure, I don't see why not." Kiba said. The matter of the fact was that Kiba was still injured, and he knew he wouldn't be doing anything to strenuous over the next few days.

"Good, now take Konoha's newest genin here and get to it. I'm expecting you two to be thorough. You take her through every district. Also, Tayuya, ANBU will be watching. Do I make myself clear?" Tsunade asked.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." the two genin replied in unison. They both then turned around and exited the office. Tsunade slammed her head on her desk after they left, and reached out for her desk drawer. She opened up the top one and flicked a small switch. A secret compartment dislodged itself from between the first and second drawers on the right side. Tsunade reached in and dug out a cup and a bottle of sake. That red-haired kunoichi was going to be the end of her. Naruto wasn't so bad, now that he had been taken in by the Hyuga. But, this girl was something else. Maybe Tsunade could convince Hiashi to adopt another kid...

..._Yeah right._ Tsunade thought as she poured some sake into her cup and downed the thing in one go, it was going to be a long day.

* * *

Kiba escorted Tayuya out of the Ninja Ops building and into the town of Konoha. Now that he got a good look at her, she really was quite pretty. He counted himself lucky, his mission was to practically go out on a date with her.

"Well where would you like to start, Tayuya?" Kiba said with a grin.

"I don't care, let's just fucking get this done, mutt boy." Tayuya replied.

Kiba felt a little shot down by that one. But he tried again, "Let's see, we got the four major residential districts, the industrial district, two commercial districts, the training grounds, and the clan compounds. Anything stand out?"

"Not really, I just want to hurry up and get this over with." Tayuya replied indifferently.

"Well, I guess we'll just go to the Northern Residential District, since it's closest. Got any questions for me?" Kiba asked, trying to get the girl to act nice.

"Yeah, do all you Konoha bastards smell like fucking wet dog?" Tayuya asked seriously.

Kiba deadpanned at those words, "I do not smell like a dog!"

This elicited a laugh out of Tayuya, "You're a jumpy fucker, aren't you kid?"

"Shut the hell up..." Kiba retorted.

"You have a town to show me, right?" Tayuya said, "Let's get to it, the less time I waste on this, the sooner I can get to training."

"Fine, let's go." Kiba said coldly. _Man, she's a fucking bitch...._

Tayuya looked at Kiba's back as he walked off. _He's actually kinda cute, and I love those fangs of his. I wonder if he's as wild as he looks..._

* * *

Tsunade was staring at her long time friend and teammate. Even if she did want to punch his lights out half the time, he had always proven himself to be a rather reliable comrade. No matter how many times she said that to herself, she wanted to send him through a wall right now. Jiraiya just couldn't keep his eyes off her chest.

"You wanted to talk, Jiraiya, so talk." Tsunade muttered angrily. She was about two milliseconds from putting Jiraiya into a world of hurt.

"Oh, yeah." Jiraiya said, forcing himself to look away from Tsunade's bust and look into her eyes. "It's about Naruto."

"What about the little brat?" Tsunade asked.

"Well, my sources tell me that Akatsuki are getting ready to start making moves. I don't know what their goals are, but they are after the bijuu and therefore jinchuuriki. I don't know when they plan on trying to nab Naruto again, but I think it would be best if I took him with me. We'll be harder to track on the road than here in Konoha, and I can protect him while I train him. I'll come back when I've trained him enough so that he can truly take care of himself. No more than two or three years." Jiraiya informed Tsunade of his plan.

Tsunade started to say something before she was interrupted. "I don't think that's such a good idea, Jiraiya-sama." A voice called out from outside the window. Tsunade and Jiraiya went over to the window to see who it was that had been eavesdropping.

Obito was lounging easily on the small outcropping of roof to the left of the Hokage's window.

"Care to explain why you were eavesdropping on your Hokage?" Tsunade asked.

"I wasn't eavesdropping." Obito said with a smile, "I was taking a nap, and you two woke me up. I couldn't help but hear the conversation."

Tsunade reached out through the window, grabbed Obito by the collar and violently threw him into her office. He landed against the far wall and slid down to rest on his head.

"Oww......." Obito complained as he righted himself, "That hurt, Hokage-sama."

"Punishment for eavesdropping." Tsunade replied, "Now you said that Naruto leaving would be a bad idea, why?" Jiraiya's eyebrow cocked up in interest, he wanted to know why as well.

"It's pretty simple, really. He's too important to too many people to let go for that long a time frame." Obito explained.

"Explain." Tsunade commanded.

Obito sighed before launching into his explanation, "He's a good influence on too many people that nee him right now. I think the only reason Sasuke stayed in Konoha was Naruto. Also, the Hyuga are slowly mending the broken relationship between the main families and branch families. Hiashi has informed me that it's most likely Naruto's doing. Being the big kid that he is, he apparently spends a lot of his free time with some of the smaller Hyuga children, whether or not they are from a branch family or main family. Those children would not have any other interaction if not for him. Hiashi believes it's mending the rift between them. There's also Hinata. Jiraiya, you should know he won't leave her behind for a moment."

"It's safer for him to be gone." Jiraiya answered, "Itachi and Kisame just waltzed in here, what's to stop them from doing it again?"

"If I understand the mission reports correctly, they almost got to him while he was out with you on the mission to retrieve the Hokage, correct? That could happen again as well." Obito countered, "We have to deal with facts, not what-ifs. Simply put, there's too many people that want him here, need him here, for him to leave so abruptly. He's like his father in that regard, he worms his way into people's hearts whether they want him to or not. Besides, we have three of the four legendary Yonnin here, there isn't a safer place on the face of the planet. Train him here Jiraiya, surely you can do that."

Jiraiya was slightly annoyed, "I can't train him as much here as I can on the road, where I can take him around with me. I have to many contacts to meet at various times to stay here for more than maybe a week a time."

"Then find some other people to help in his training, like I did. I passed him to you because I don't know a lot of the jutsu that would fit his style or chakra natures. However, I'm more than happy to help out with the training, he is still one of my genin after all." Obito reasoned. "It's just a bad idea to take him away for a long period of time right now."

Tsunade finally made her opinion known before the two could bicker anymore, "You both make some good points. I think the best way to approach this is to ask Naruto what he wants to do. Whichever way he decides to go, we'll let him take that route. Agreed?"

Both men nodded, certain that Naruto would take his side. Tsunade was glad that at least they would stop arguing. "That settles it then, I'll call him in tomorrow to see what his decision is. Now if you don't mind, I have a mountain of paperwork to go over." Again, both men nodded, however Tsunade noticed how Jiraiya had his eyes glued to her chest again, before making their way out. _I swear, one of these days, I'm going to kill that damn pervert..._

* * *

Neji was sitting quietly in his room, enjoying the peacefulness. That was until he heard a knock at his door. He didn't know who could be visiting him, Hiashi and Hanabi had just left a few minutes ago and he was sure Naruto would rather spend time with Hinata.

"Enter." Neji called out. The door opened to admit quite a few people. First through was Rock Lee, then Tenten, and they were followed up by Haku, who shut the door behind himself. "What are you all doing in here?"

"Can we not check up on an injured teammate?" Haku asked from the door.

"How are you Neji-kun?" Tenten asked.

"I'm okay." Neji replied stoically, "just suffering from chakra exhaustion. Nurses say I should be out tomorrow."

"That's good..." Tenten said.

"Yosh! You're fires of youth shall burn brightly." Lee exclaimed in his usual manner. It used to annoy Neji, how upbeat the green-clad genin was, but now he kind of enjoyed it. Lee was the yin to Neji's yang, it didn't seem right without the other there.

"How about you Lee?" Neji asked, "Are you going to take the surgery?"

"Yes." Lee said, "I talked to Hokage-sama after you all had left. The surgery is scheduled in two days. She said something about doing some research to help increase the odds of success. She said, if the surgery succeeds, I'll have to rehab for a month or two before resuming normal work."

"That's good." Neji said, "I wish you luck in the surgery Lee."

"Yes, It will be a success, I'm sure!" Lee said with exuberance.

Neji smiled at his teammates, "I'm glad you came out of everything alright Haku."

"Yes, as it turns out, I was put in very beneficial situation. My abilities were a natural bad match up for my opponent." Haku said simply. "I was lucky."

Neji nodded, glad not everyone was seriously hurt on this mission. "I see."

Tenten looked at her two non-bedridden teammates, "Can you leave for a moment. I want to talk to Neji, alone."

Haku nodded politely and then stifled a Lee that was about to say something and drug him out of the room.

"What is it you wanted to talk about, Tenten?" Neji asked.

"How could you?" Tenten screamed at him. Neji was taken aback, not knowing where this was coming from.

"What are you talking about, Tenten?" Neji asked worriedly.

"How could you go on a mission like that and not tell me. Do you think I'm not strong enough to help?" Tenten asked.

"It's not that, Tenten. It was just that time was important, and we didn't have time to get everybody, it would have taken too long." Neji explained.

"You didn't even call me." Tenten said, "I didn't even know were you went until I figured out you were in the hospital with Hinata. I thought the worst, Neji. I thought you might have been seriously injured or something."

"Tenten, you know that things like this happen on missions. You weren't this worried about Lee, and you didn't say anything to Haku..." Neji tried to calm the girl.

"That's because I don't love them like I do you!" Tenten shouted quickly. She suddenly clapped her hands around her mouth. _Did I really just say that?_

Neji was speechless. Did Tenten really just confess to him? He didn't have any words to say, but he tried nonetheless, "Tenten... I..."

"This isn't exactly how I pictured everything going." Tenten said as she took a seat in the chair beside his bed. "But, when I heard you were in the hospital, my greatest fear was that you could die without me ever telling you. So I guess this is for the better."

"I don't know what to say, Tenten. How long have you held this back." Neji asked.

"Ever since we've been on a team together. Even more so since you've changed." Tenten confessed, "I don't know why, but I just feel safer, happier whenever your around. I like being around you Neji."

Neji looked into Tenten's eyes. She seemed to be telling the truth, and he was pretty good at reading people. "I've never even thought about girls." Neji made his own confession, "Earlier, I was always caught up in my own pitiful struggle against fate, and lately I've been obsessed with my training and getting stronger. However, now that I think about it, you've always been there to help me. You're always the one helping me perfect my abilities, like the Kaiten." Neji eventually laughed as he recalled all those times.

"Neji?" Tenten asked, wondering why he was laughing.

"I'm sorry, Tenten. I just remembered that I've never once said thank you. So, thanks, for everything." Neji informed her.

"Um... You're welcome Neji-kun." Tenten said as a light blush crept up her cheeks.

"I can't say I love you back, Tenten. I hope you understand that." Neji stated, "But, I think I would like the chance to fall in love with you. I realize that you are something special, and I don't think I could find another woman like you."

"I... uh... are you asking... to go out?" Tenten asked, unsure of what he was trying to say.

"Yes." Neji replied in his normal calm demeanor, "I'm asking if you want to be a couple. Do you want to be my girlfriend?"

"Yes, Neji-kun, Yes!" Tenten shouted happily and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into an embrace. Neji could feel his cheeks get a little hot, he knew he was blushing a little. Truth be told, this was the first time he'd been so close to a girl who wasn't related to him in a non-combat situation.

"Okay, Tenten. You can let go of me now." Neji said. Tenten complied and sat back down in the chair, her blush deepened when she realized exactly what she had done. Neji stifled a chuckle before getting down to business, "So, how about tomorrow after I get released from the hospital? I'll pick you up at seven."

"Huh?" Tenten said dumbly.

"A date." Neji said. He knew love could do some strange things to people, but did it turn everyone into morons? He had seen how Hinata and Naruto would act around each other every now and then, as if they were both mentally handicapped. If that's what happened to those in love, did he want to do it?

"Yeah, it's a date." Tenten answered.

* * *

Naruto strolled into the Hokage's office. A messenger had informed him that Tsunade wanted to see him first thing that morning. He really wanted to be with Hinata, keeping her company. Luckily, the nurses said she should be able to leave in a couple of days.

Naruto knocked on the door.

"Come in, Naruto." Tsunade called out. Naruto walked in to see Jiraiya and Obito already in the room.

"So what's this about, Hokage-sama?" Naruto asked.

"We have a lot to discuss, Naruto, and you have a decision to make." Tsunade answered cryptically. Naruto however nodded and took a seat in front of her desk. "Now that everyone's here, let's begin. Naruto, you have two options laid before you. Jiraiya wants to take you out for training, and Obito believes you should stay, but I'm leaving the final decision to you."

"What do you mean? Why should I stay, I mean it's just a training session right? We couldn't be gone longer than a month or two, right?" Naruto said.

"No, this isn't an ordinary training session, Naruto. Jiraiya, for various reasons, wants to take you out of Konoha for an extended period of time." Tsunade informed the genin.

"How long?" Naruto asked.

"Two to three years." Tsunade answered. "You have a decision to make, Naruto. Will you leave here for a few years or will you stay?"

* * *

A/N

JKArcanus: Thanks for the review. I'm sorry about making it feel like Naruto got the short end of the stick. But if you really think about it, he has in canon too. But that's not really justification for me leaving that way. Simply, I was just worried about Naruto becoming too powerful too fast and him simply overpowering everyone he meets. Therefore, he has to be weaker than most of his peers in order for any fight he's in to be interesting. Otherwise, I'd have to buff up everyone else even more just to keep up, then the power creep would be a little overwhelming. However, please don't fret, Naruto will be receiving much better training in the coming chapters. Thank you for your concern over the story, it shows you actually care what happens.

Sonic Man 3: yes I realize this represents a major departure from canon, and that how I handle it can determine whether this fanfic is a complete failure or a success. However, this is what I wanted, I never wanted to do a complete canon rehashing. I retold canon to this point to pick up a couple of extra characters I wanted to get (Haku and Tayuya) and also to show how different things could have been if Obito survived. Thank you for your concern.

I hope you all enjoyed chapter 15. I must admit, I had some trouble writing this one. For some reason, I just felt like I didn't handle some of the characters correctly and couldn't no matter if I tried to rewrite the section or not. Maybe I'm just being paranoid, maybe now. Anyway, again, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and remember to review, I like those.


	16. Chapter 16 Answers

Four Man Squads

Chapter 16 - The Answer

Naruto almost laughed. He couldn't believe they were actually asking him this question. "No, I'm not going." he answered, amusement obvious in his voice.

"Hold on before you make a decision." Tsunade said as she looked at Obito and Jiraiya, "There's two sides to this, and you should hear them both." She nodded at Jiraiya.

"Listen, kid." Jiraiya said. "You remember those guys that came after you back when we were hunting for Tsunade?"

Naruto simply nodded.

"Those guys are members of a group called Akatsuki. The group is full of nothing but S-class missing nins, and they're after the bijuu. This means they're after the jinchuuriki too. They want the Kyuubi from you, and I don't know why. These men are ruthless, and will stop at nothing to get what they want. They'll hurt you, those close to you, and anyone else they think might help them get to you. If you're not here, then they won't come here. I'll take you out of Konoha for a couple years or so and train you until you can defend yourself. Right now, you couldn't do anything if they were to show up and hurt those close to you, like Hinata." Jiraiya stated his viewpoint.

"Well if you put it like that..." Naruto said, obviously thinking about changing his mind.

"Wait." Obito interrupted, "Naruto, there's no guarantee that they won't get you out on the road either. With three of the Yonnin here, Konoha is quite possibly the safest place in the elemental nations. You also have a lot going for you here, can you really leave for years? What about your new family? what about your friends? You should really think this over."

"I don't know..." Naruto said as he looked at the floor. He wanted to protect Hinata, so that meant leaving. However, he also knew he couldn't stand being away from her for that long. It was so confusing.

"Jiraiya, how long before you need to leave to make contact with your network?" Tsunade asked.

"Around a week, maybe less." Jiraiya answered.

"Would five days do?" Tsunade asked.

"Yeah."

"Alright, you don't have to answer now, Naruto." Tsunade said, "You have five days to come to a decision, so think about it."

Naruto nodded, his mind still on what the best solution was. If he went he could be sure everyone was safe, or at least wouldn't be in extra danger because of him. If he stayed, then he would have his new family, friends, and of course Hinata. As soon as he seemed he was ready to go in one direction, the other gave his imagination a sharp pull and he was back to square one.

Tsunade looked at the boy sadly. It was a tough decision to make, and he seemed to be agonizing over it. She got up from behind her desk and went over to the blond haired genin. She would never admit it to his face, but she cared about the boy like he was her nephew or grandson. "Naruto, if you want to talk about it, you can come see me. I know it's a tough decision. So my doors are open if you need me." She told him as she placed a caring hand on his shoulder.

Naruto looked into Tsunade's eyes and then nodded, "Thanks, Obaasan."

Tsunade was slightly irked that the boy had just called her a grandmother, but she couldn't make herself stay angry at him for long. Not right now anyway. "That's all I had for you, Naruto. You can go now if you want."

Naruto nodded and walked out the door, not saying anything to anyone as he left. He wandered around outside, eyes to the sky. His mind was still swimming, he didn't have a clue in what to do.

Naruto shook his head clear and focused on the street in front of him. "I wonder what Hinata-hime is doing?" Naruto mused to himself as he settled on returning home.

* * *

Hinata had slept in a little compared to usual. Team 7 was getting a small break from missions, considering everything that had happened. Kiyoshi had told her that they would not be training until her arm was fully healed. She looked at her left arm, it looked okay now, but the med-nins had told her not to do anything to strenuous for a week or so. She knew now why, she couldn't channel chakra through that arm well and it easily got fatigued. She could barely use it to help dig in her garden.

Hinata looked out of her bedroom window to the garden that she worked on when she had time. She actually enjoyed having these few days off, it had been nice. She turned and went to her closet, pulled out a towel and a set of casual clothes to wear before making her way to the bathroom and the shower.

After she had gotten cleaned up and dressed, Hinata went out to her garden. She was wearing an old worn out pair of capris and a slightly faded purple t-shirt, nothing that she minded getting dirty. She sat to work on her garden. It had been suffering from some mild neglect. A couple of areas were slightly overrun with weeds. Luckily, she had harvested most of her garden before she ad left with Naruto and Jiraiya to make more of her ointments.

However before she could truly set to work a couple of arms wrapped her up from behind in a gentle embrace. "Should have known you'd been out here, hime."

Hinata smiled when he heard him speak, "Good morning, Naruto-kun."

"It is now." Naruto replied. He still held her from behind, enjoying the moment.

"What did Tsunade-sama want to talk about?" Hinata asked. She had been there when the messenger had told him to be at the Hokage's office this morning.

Naruto sighed and let Hinata go as he sat down beside her and wrapped up her right hand in his left. "Ero-sennin wants me to go out on a training trip with him. I don't know if I want to."

"Why not? You always love training and learning new things." Hinata prodded.

"Because it's supposed to be for a couple of years." Naruto answered her, "You remember those guys in the black coats from when we got Tsunade."

"Yes, they wanted to take you away. I think I heard Jiraiya-sama say something about Akatsuki..." Hinata dug up the memory.

"Yeah, apparently they are after the bijuu, Kyuubi included." Naruto said, "Ero-sennin says that I should leave the village for a few years, not only to get stronger, but to keep myself and my loved ones safe. If I'm not here, Akatsuki has no reason to show up."

"But..." Hinata said sadly, "I wouldn't see you for years. I don't know if I could do it, Naruto-kun."

"I don't know if I could do it either, but I also want to protect you. I don't want to put you at risk." Naruto said.

"I'm a ninja, Naruto-kun. Risk comes with the job." Hinata replied looking him dead in the eyes, "I want to be with you, no matter how dangerous it might be."

"I know that." Naruto answered, "But these aren't normal ninjas we're talking about either. They're S-class missing nins. These are guys that only our stronger jonin have a chance to handle..."

"I know that, and I don't care." Hinata said, "I know you'll do what you think is best Naruto-kun, but I won't let you go willingly. I want you to stay here. Besides, there's no guarantee they won't come here if you leave."

Naruto went silent after that. Hinata made a good point, there was no guarantee that Konoha would be completely safe from Akatsuki if he wasn't there. However, he still thought that they would be safer with him gone.

"I don't know..." Naruto ended up saying, "At least I have some time to think about it."

"How long?" Hinata asked. For all she knew, she could be asking how much time she had to spend with him before he was gone for the next few years.

"Five days." Naruto replied simply.

"Well, no matter what, at least I have the next five days with you." Hinata said as she stared at him.

"Yeah." Naruto answered, "No matter what happens, I'll always love you, hime. Even if I'm gone for years."

"And I will always love you, Naruto-kun. I always have." Hinata mirrored his feelings.

"How about we get out of here and do something?" Naruto suggested, "I need to clear my mind."

"Alright, let me change." Hinata replied, the garden was completely forgotten.

"Yeah, I should change as well." Naruto said. He was wearing his dark orange and blue outfit and he had his mission gear on. He didn't know what Tsunade had been wanting him for, so he had went prepared.

Naruto and Hinata walked together hand in hand until Hinata left to enter her room. Naruto walked on down the hall a little ways to his room and went to change as well.

* * *

After changing into a more comfortable outfit, an orange t-shirt with a black spiral design in the middle and a pair of knee-length blue shorts. He was hanging out if the small courtyard between the actual front door to the house where he lived with Hiashi, Hinata, Neji, and Hanabi and the main gate to the Hyuuga estate.

After a few moments Hinata emerged from the house wearing a light lavender sundress. Naruto just looked at her for a moment. Then something hit him, he had never seen her in a dress before. In fact he had never seen her in anything except her mission gear, except for at the party where she had worn the kimono. He didn't even realize he was staring rather too intently at her.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata said shyly. The dress was comfortable, but she wasn't use to wearing something quite as revealing as the sundress in public. Of course revealing to Hinata was modest to most everyone else. The neckline stopped well before it got anywhere near her bust and the hem went down to a inch or so below her knees. Her arms were uncovered, but that was about it.

Naruto brought himself back to reality, "Sorry, Hinata-chan. It's just that I've never seen you in a dress before, and um... you look really pretty."

Hinata smiled at him, happy that she seemingly surprised him, "Thank you, Naruto-kun. What do you have in mind?"

"I dunno." Naruto replied with a big grin, "I figured we could just go and see what kind of trouble we could get into."

"Well, it's almost lunchtime. Maybe we should go get something to eat first?" Hinata suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds good. Maybe we should go and see what everyone else is doing. I haven't really seen any of the guys around since we went after Sasuke." Naruto added.

"Okay." Hinata agreed. "Ichiraku's then?"

"You know me too well, hime." Naruto said, his big goofy smile still in place. He wrapped an arm around Hinata's shoulders and they began to stroll towards the ramen stand.

* * *

"This is the eastern commercial district." Kiba said wearily as he continued to show Tayuya around Konoha. They had been doing this for the last couple of days. The Hokage told him to be thorough and that's what he was doing. He made sure that Tayuya saw every nook and cranny of the town, where all the emergency bunkers for civilians were, and everything else of importance.

They had started again this morning. Kiba was getting tired off it. Tayuya was just plain hostile. She never missed a chance to belittle him, insult him, or just generally make his life hell. It was really starting to grate on his nerves.

"Hey, mutt, I'm hungry is there anywhere to get a bite around here?" Tayuya asked.

"I'm not a mutt, damn it." Kiba muttered under his breath before finally speaking up, "Yeah, there's a ramen stand around the next corner, we can stop there."

"Alright, you're paying, dog breath." Tayuya said as she hurried around the corner.

Akamaru yipped at Kiba from on top of his head.

"I know, Akamaru." Kiba said, "I don't like her that much either, but a job is a job." Kiba continued along the road, slowly making his way to Ichiraku Ramen. However, as he came around the corner he saw something he wasn't expecting. Naruto, in civilian clothes, was in Tayuya's face and both of them were shouting at each other unintelligibly. Of to the side, Hinata was just looking on at her boyfriend going off the handle at Tayuya. Naruto must have remembered who Tayuya was.

"Why are you strutting around here in a Konoha headband!" Naruto shouted, "You tried to kidnap Sasuke, we should have just killed you!"

"Shut up, you blond-haired asswipe!" Tayuya shouted back, "You don't know what's going on here, so leave me the fuck alone!"

"I don't care what you're doing here! You shouldn't be here! You're one of Orochimaru's lackeys!" Naruto returned.

"You don't know a damn thing about me!" Tayuya volleyed, "You think I wanted to work for him? You can kiss my ass, squirt!"

"Hey, shut it up you two!" Kiba called out as he ran over to the scene and got in between his charge and Naruto. He turned to look at Naruto, hoping to explain the situation, "Look, I know what you think but, this is Hokage's orders. She's a genin of Konoha, just like us. I don't know the reasons why Hokage-sama is letting her walk free, but they have to be good ones. I'm in charge of showing her around, so I can't let you go beating her up."

"Obaasan let her go?" Naruto asked, not truly expecting an answer.

"Yeah, she did you dumb shit." Tayuya answered anyway, "All I was going to do was try to enjoy some lunch until you got all up in my fucking face."

"Why?" Naruto asked again, "What could there be that made it alright for you to attack and take one of our own? What's so special about you?"

Tayuya looked away, but she still kept her tough demeanor, "I don't have to explain myself to you."

"Naruto-kun, if Tsunade-sama trusts her, then it should be alright. Can we just go and enjoy lunch?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah, I guess your right, hime. You're coming, right?" Naruto asked Tayuya.

"Huh?" Tayuya looked at him questioningly, surprised by the complete turnaround in the blond's attitude.

"Hinata-hime's right. If Obaasan made you a Konoha-nin, then there has to be a good reason." Naruto said, his smile back on, "So that makes you a comrade, right?"

"I guess..." Tayuya answered. She didn't know what to think of the kid. Part of her liked him, and the other part thought he was as dumb as a bag of hammers.

"Well, come on then. Ichiraku's is the best ramen anywhere!" Naruto said as he entered the small stand, Hinata following after quickly.

Tayuya just stood there dumbfounded for a few moments. That kid had to have a screw loose somewhere. One moment he was ready to rip her head off, and the next he was treating her as though she was some sort of long time friend. "What the hell is his problem?"

"He's strange like that." Kiba answered her rhetorical question, "He's always been unpredictable, so don't be too surprised." After saying that Kiba stepped inside the stand as well.

Tayuya just looked at the entrance to the ramen stand for a few more minutes. Were these people just playing "ninja"? She couldn't understand it, everything they did and said was at odds with the way she had grown up under Orochimaru. How could he have came from this village? Putting her thoughts away, she stepped across the threshold to enjoy "the best ramen anywhere."

* * *

"This is too troublesome..." Shikamaru complained as he walked down the street.

"Quit being lazy!" Temari said as she hit him in the head.

"Temari, you're going to scare him away like that..." Chiyoko said from behind her older teammate.

"Nah, he's use to it." Chouji answered, "Ino does the same kinds of things."

"Women are so troublesome." Shikamaru said to himself as he rubbed the back of his head, "What should we do then?"

"Barbecue!" Chouji and Chiyoko yelled out in unison.

"Wow..." Temari said, "They're sure on the same wavelength."

"You sure they're not related?" Shikamaru asked.

"Of course, the Guujin are one of the oldest clans in Suna. Even though their numbers are dwindling." Temari answered.

"Chouji can be troublesome by himself when he's eating. But, she's just like him..." Shikamaru said as he let loose a sigh, "I hope Chouji brought money, I'm not paying for it."

"I would say something..." Temari said, "...but, I agree. I think they would eat more than I could pay for after a month of D-rank missions."

"They're leaving us behind..." Shikamaru stated, "I knew this was a bad idea."

"Oh, shut up." Temari replied. Although she was beginning to think it was a bad idea as well. She never knew where the girl put it all, but Chiyoko could pack down enough food to feed ten fully grown men.

Shikamaru and Temari eventually caught up to Chouji and Chiyoko outside of the Barbecue restaurant that Team 10 frequented.

"Come on, guys! This beef isn't going to eat itself!" Chiyoko called out as Shikamaru and Temari caught up.

"Another troublesome woman..." Shikamaru muttered. However, he could see Chouji smiling from beside the excitable Suna kunoichi. If she made him happy, then Shikamaru was glad for him.

"All right, Chiyoko." Temari answered her teammate's call, "Calm down, we're supposed to be taking it easy, remember?"

"I know, I know! But, the stuff they make here is better than anywhere in Suna!" Chiyoko said excitedly.

"Yes, this place has the best barbecue in all of Konoha." Chouji answered.

"He should know." Shikamaru said, "The Akimichi are famous for being big eaters and food critics. They go to all the restaurants in Konoha and many outside of the town. If you ever need to know where the best places to eat are, ask an Akimichi."

"Really?" Chiyoko looked up at Chouji, her eyes widened in awe.

"Yeah, my family keeps a log of all the best places to eat. I've got most of the locations memorized." Chouji answered.

"You have to take me to all of them, Chouji-kun!" Chiyoko told him, her tone not leaving any room for disagreement.

"He can't, we've stayed too long as it is, Chiyoko." Temari stated, "We have to head back tomorrow."

"But..." Chiyoko started.

"No buts." Temari cut her off, "We cannot stay here any longer."

"Hey, can we go in now. All this standing around and talking is a chore." Shikamaru inserted himself into the conversation. Temari and Chiyoko stopped their argument and nodded and the four of them entered the restaurant. However, none of them were prepared for the sight that greeted them.

"Gaara?" Chiyoko called out.

"Otouto?" Temari said at the same time.

Shikamaru looked over to a booth to see Gaara calmly enjoying a meal with another guy who had a familiar frump of white hair.

"Shiroi, what are you doing here with Gaara?" Shikamaru asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Well." Shiroi stated, "The guy saved my life out there during the mission, so the least I could do was buy him a dinner or something."

"I told you this was unnecessary." Gaara stated in his usual monotone.

"Heh, I know, but I still feel obligated." Shiroi shrugged, "Besides, you're trying to make friends right? Naruto can't be your only one."

Gaara sighed, "Yes, I guess you are correct."

"So, if it's not me repaying you, just think of it as a friend treating you to a dinner." Shiroi suggested. "Anyway, the rest of you want to join us?"

"Sure!" Chiyoko said for the rest of the group as she plopped down into the booth next to Gaara. Chouji took up a seat beside her, while Shikamaru and Temari sat beside Shiroi.

"Anyway, I never heard what happened to you two after we all got separated. What happened?" Shikamaru asked.

"Well, that guy, Kimimaro ran off a ways before Naruto and I finally caught up." Shiroi started the story, "Naruto fought him for a bit. Kimimaro had this odd Kekkei Genkai to where he could manipulate his own skeletal structure. He could even make weapons out of his bones. Anyway, I just watched as Naruto and Kimimaro fought, trying to find a weakness in Kimimaro's technique. After a while, that barrel holding Sasuke exploded and the Uchiha ran off. I held down the fort while Naruto went after Sasuke. Kimimaro and I fought for a good while, he forced me to pull out all my moves. Even Pink didn't beat him. Anyway, just when I thought I was done for Gaara showed up..."

"I didn't fare much better." Gaara stated, "I crushed the man several times, but his ability to control his bones gave him a natural resistance to my attacks. In the end we were saved when Kimimaro succumbed to an illness of some sort before delivering the final blow."

"I see. What happened after the fight?" Shikamaru asked.

"Well, we looked Sasuke and Naruto for a little bit, but couldn't find where they had went." Shiroi said, "Eventually, we decided to head back to where everyone else had been, and we eventually met up with Kiba and Haku and came back with them. I had went to the hospital to let them heal the cuts that I had received. I wasn't there long, I totally missed Naruto and Sasuke showing up. I've just been hanging around and doing some light training for the past few days. I found Gaara wandering the streets a couple of hours ago and finally convinced him to come have a bite to eat with me."

"Well that's good." Chiyoko said, "He needs more friends." Chiyoko then patted Gaara on the back.

Gaara looked down at his kunoichi teammate, a look of mild annoyance on his face. Even though they were the same age, Chiyoko could act like a five year old at times.

"Don't look at me like that meanie." Chiyoko pouted, "It's the truth. You need more friends. How about you Chouji-kun?"

"Yeah, I guess." Chouji said, he then stretched his hand out across Chiyoko to Gaara, "Chouji Akimichi."

Gaara accepted the handshake, "Gaara of the Desert."

"Shikamaru Nara." Shikamaru said from his seat, "However, we've met before."

"Yes, I'm sorry about what I tried to do to your friend." Gaara said.

"Don't worry about it." Shikamaru said, "He's alright now, from what I've heard. His surgery was a success and he's currently rehabbing his arm and leg."

Soon a waitress appeared at the table carrying one order of beef and one order of chicken, "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know more people were showing up she said as she handed Shiroi the chicken and Gaara the beef.

"It's okay." Shiroi stated, "We weren't expecting them. Just a convenient coincidence."

"I see." The waitress said, "Can I get the rest of you anything?"

"One order of beef." Shikamaru said.

"One order of chicken." Temari answered.

"Four orders of beef!" Chouji and Chiyoko said together. The two then looked at each other, flames in their eyes.

"Never gonna happen, little girl." Chouji taunted.

"Circles, big boy, circles." Chiyoko retorted.

Shikamaru sighed as the waitress left to retrieve their orders. This was going to be a troublesome lunch...

* * *

Hinata and Naruto were casually strolling down the streets in the southern commercial district. They weren't really doing anything, just strolling around looking at the shops and enjoying their time together.

"Hey, Naruto!" The two heard a very familiar voice call out from behind them. Naruto and Hinata turned around to find the familiar scarred face of Iruka.

"Oi, Iruka-sensei! Didn't think we'd be seeing you." Naruto said, "Aren't classes at the academy still going on?"

"I'm on my free period, so I came out here to grab lunch." Iruka responded as he got close to the two genin, "I heard about the adoption, congratulations. I bet it's nice to have a real family."

"Yeah, it is." Naruto smiled, "Thanks, Iruka-sensei."

Iruka then noticed that the two of them were holding hands, "Oh, It looks like you finally realized it, eh?"

"Huh?" Naruto looked to where Iruka had looked to see his hand entwined with Hinata's, "Yeah, I really should have done it earlier."

"Iruka-sensei, how did you know?" Hinata asked.

"Please, Hinata, You don't think I am a chuunin for nothing? It was obvious from how you looked at Naruto that you liked him." Iruka replied with a smile, "I was just worried how long it would take him to notice."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Iruka-sensei." Naruto responded, slightly miffed.

"Hey, hey, all that matters is that you did notice." Iruka replied, "How are things going, then, I heard you had been hospitalized after a mission?"

"I'm doing okay." Hinata responded, "My arm is still a little weak, but it should pass in a few more days."

"That's good." Iruka said, "I haven't seen you guys since the chuunin exams, so it's good you're doing well. Are you going to be participating in the next exam in Suna?"

Naruto and Hinata went silent at that. Naruto still hadn't came close to a decision about leaving with Jiraiya.

"I don't know." Naruto answered truthfully, "Ero-sennin wants me to go out on a training trip with him for a few years. I don't know if I'm going to go or not. Part of me wants to go, but part of me wants to stay here too..."

Iruka smiled down at his favorite student, "Well, I'm sure you got a lot to think about, Naruto. On one hand, you have Hinata, your family, and your friends. On the other, is the chance to gain a lot of knowledge from one of the greatest ninjas ever. I don't envy the decision you have to make. Do you want my advice?"

"I'd take anybody's advice at this point." Naruto replied.

Iruka smiled at him, "Do whatever you think will make you happiest. Life's too short to do anything you'll regret."

"Well, I think I'd be happier here with Hinata-hime and everyone else." Naruto replied.

"Then, that's your answer isn't it?" Iruka asked.

"I guess, but is it really that simple?" Naruto said.

"Nothing is ever simple, Naruto. However, this time, I think it should be." Iruka advised.

"Arigato, Iruka-sensei. You've been a big help." Naruto answered.

"No problem, Naruto." Iruka said, "I'm always here if you need advice. You too, Hinata."

"Arigato, Iruka-sensei." Hinata replied with a bow.

Iruka took a quick glance at his watch, "Crap, I'm going to be late. Don't be afraid to stop by my room at the academy anytime. Ja ne."

"Ja ne, Iruka-sensei." Naruto and Hinata said together as they waved goodbye to their old teacher.

"So you're really going to stay?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah I think so. I want to talk to Obaasan one more time before I make my final decision, but Iruka-sensei was right. I should do what would make me happiest, and that means being with you." Naruto answered.

Hinata beamed with approval, "That makes me glad, Naruto-kun. I don't know what I would've done if you decided to leave."

"You would've went on without me." Naruto told her, "You would have continued training with Kiyoshi-sensei, and you would've waited for me. You're strong, you don't need me as much as you think."

"Maybe." Hinata answered, "But I want you with me. I don't want to go back to the way things were before we became a couple."

"Yeah, I feel the same way. C'mon, let's go talk to Obaasan." Naruto said as he changed their direction to take them to the Ninja Ops building.

* * *

Kiba and Tayuya were going through the industrial district, passing by several warehouses and several manufacturing facilities. Kiba was kinda worried something was wrong, Tayuya hadn't really said anything since the run in with Naruto.

"Oi, what's wrong, Tayuya?" Kiba asked.

"Nothing." Tayuya said as she made sure to commit the layout of the town to memory.

"There's definitely something wrong. You haven't insulted me in at least a half an hour." Kiba said.

"Just shut up, kibble breath. I can't wrap my head around you guys, alright? You guys run around here saying you're ninjas, but you make friends and bonds that can be used against you. It doesn't make any sense, a ninja should only rely one herself. You can't trust anyone, not even your teammates." Tayuya finally let loose what she was thinking.

"That's what you think?" Kiba asked.

"Yes, you're all so fucking stupid." Tayuya said.

"Then you've never heard of the 'Will of Fire'?" Kiba asked again.

"No I've never heard of it. What is this, twenty fucking questions?" Tayuya snapped.

Kiba fought to keep his calm. He could shout at her, it's what he wanted to do. However, he had a feeling that keeping calm would have a better effect, "It's something we are taught at the Academy from the first day we are there. It's the wish of the First Hokage, that the ninja of Konoha make these bonds and do what they can to protect them. To us, these bonds aren't a weakness, but our strength. We will go farther, try harder, to protect and help our friends. You saw this when we chased you, right?"

Tayuya thought about it, "I guess. Still, it makes no sense to me."

"You'll find out eventually." Kiba assured her, "Just wait, you'll make friends here, too. Then you'll find out about the 'Will of Fire.' Anyway, this should do it, the industrial district was the last place we had to visit. I guess you should be happy, you can finally get to training and you don't have to hang around me anymore."

"Yeah, I guess I should be." Tayuya said. She didn't really mean it. The fact of the matter was, she hadn't had so much fun ever since she had been 'recruited' by Orochimaru. She had to admit, she kinda liked the feral looking boy.

"We should go check in with the Hokage," Kiba said, "She'll want to know that we've finished your tour."

"Yeah." Tayuya agreed, "But, can I ask you a question, mutt?"

Kiba looked at her from his position walking beside her. She didn't seem like herself, or at least not what he had met for the first few days. The mutt comment got under his skin, but he decided to let it slide, "Yeah, sure."

"You think we can hang out some more? You're the only person I know around here." Tayuya asked.

Kiba wondered if the girl was playing with him, or maybe she just wanted to have a chance to insult him some more. "What do you think, boy?"

Akamaru yipped happily a couple of times.

"You think I should?" Kiba asked to make sure.

Akamaru replied with a single affirmative bark.

"Alright. Akamaru thinks it's a good idea, so I don't see why not." Kiba said.

"Can you really talk to that dog?" Tayuya asked.

"It's not so much 'talking', but I can understand him and he can understand me." Kiba explained, "It's a trait that the Inuzuka clan has worked on for a long time. When we're young we take a puppy and start attuning our chakra with it's. Eventually, we form a sort of half-telepathic, half-empathetic bond. I don't know exactly what he's saying, but I can get the general idea. At least, that's how Mom explained it."

Tayuya listened to the explanation and nodded when Kiba was done. She continued on with the Inuzuka to Ninja Ops to meet the Hokage. She had a lot to think about, but truly she was happy. This place reminded her a lot of her old home, of what her life was like before Orochimaru showed up.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata were now standing in the Hokage's office, waiting for Tsunade to finish signing off on a few papers.

"Sorry, you two." Tsunade said, "Paperwork is such a pain. Now, you have something you want to talk about?"

"Yeah, I think I'm getting close to a decision, but I wanted to talk things over with you." Naruto asked.

"You haven't even taken the whole day yet. I wasn't really expecting you to come to a decision for a couple of days." Tsunade answered.

"I talked to Iruka-sensei, and he had some good advice." Naruto said.

"What did he say? Tsunade asked.

"He told me to do whatever would make me happiest." Naruto said.

"So, it's that simple?" Tsunade asked.

"This time it is." Naruto said.

"So I take it your staying." Tsunade deduced.

"That's the plan at the moment." Naruto stated.

"So, what do you want to talk about, Naruto?" Tsunade prodded.

"I just want to know if you think I'm doing the right thing." Naruto said.

"That's a difficult thing to answer." Tsunade replied, "On one hand, going out with Jiraiya would be a wonderful opportunity for you. On the other, you just recently got a girlfriend and family. I honestly can't say which is the right decision. But, I think Iruka gave you some good advice. Doing what will make you happy is a good idea."

"Then, I'm going to stay." Naruto said with finality.

"I guess that makes you happy too." Tsunade said with a smirk, while looking at Hinata.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Hinata answered.

"Well, I'll inform Obito and Jiraiya of your decision, Naruto. Jiraiya might not be to particularly happy about it, but he'll get over it." Tsunade said. "Is that all you wanted?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Naruto and Hinata said.

"Then, you may go. I got some more paperwork to finish." Tsunade said with a sigh as she picked back up her pen. Naruto and Hinata quietly made their way out of the office. They happened to run into Kiba and Tayuya on their way in.

"Konnichiwa, Kiba, Tayuya." Hinata greeted the two of them.

"Sup." Kiba greeted back.

"What you two doing here?" Naruto asked.

"We just finished getting Tayuya acquainted with the town, so we're reporting back into the Hokage. You?" Kiba replied.

"Just had to talk to the Hokage." Naruto replied, "I had a decision to make, and I told her what it was."

"Oh, what kind of decision?" Kiba prodded.

"Just what I wanted to do with the next two or three years." Naruto answered cryptically. "No big deal. Later, Kiba. Later, Tayuya."

"Yeah see you guys around." Kiba said as he escorted Tayuya into Tsunade's office.

"So what now?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know." Hinata replied. "We could go to the 'spot'."

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind chilling for a few hours." Naruto mused.

* * *

Rock Lee was never one for sitting around doing nothing. He was rehabbing... hard, and it was annoying the hell out of the nurses.

"156... 157... 158..." Lee counted as he sweated through his pushups.

"That's enough Lee-san!" The nurse shouted in worry. "You only needed to do twenty today." She tried to move to stop the young genin.

"NO!" Lee shouted, "I will do 200 pushups. If I fail, then I will do 400 sit ups."

"That's ridiculous, Lee-san, you can't do that many in your condition." The nurse argued.

"161... 162... 163... 164" Lee continued on, ignoring the nurse.

"Lee-san..." The nurse tried to reason with the stubborn boy.

"You should just let him be, I think." A feminine voice called out from the door to the rehab center. The nurse turned around to see a flame-haired kunoichi standing in the doorway.

"But, he really shouldn't be doing this." The nurse said in concern.

"169... 170... 171..." Lee kept up his count.

"But, it's what he wants." Kaen said, "It can't be helped. He isn't doing this because he wants too, or because he's trying to annoy you. It's his passion, he needs to do this. He has something to prove, to himself and to everyone else."

"I don't think..." the nurse tried to argue.

"175... 176... 177..." Lee continued, oblivious to the two talking women.

"There isn't any thinking to passion." Kaen answered, "It's like a fire, it burns wherever it pleases, and if it burns hot enough, nothing can extinguish it. So just let him be for the moment."

The nurse finally acquiesced as both women watched the young man finish his workout.

"195....196........197....." Lee was obviously struggling to keep going. "198........."

"Come on, Lee." Kaen encouraged him, "You can't quit now."

Lee finally recognized the new voice, "199..... I remember you.... from the preliminaries........." Lee said in between breaths, trying to muster the strength to finish.

"I watched your fight with Gaara, Lee. You were very impressive. Surely you can finish your 200 pushups." Kaen taunted him, trying to will him to finish. However, Lee was struggling more now than ever. Sure he was still up, but he couldn't muster the strength to get himself up for the last one.

"Where's your 'flames of youth'." Kaen said, "Surely you can shine much brighter than this...."

Lee's eyes became flames as he found newfound vigor, he began slowly pushing himself up to complete his exercise. Each agonizing moment seemed to take an eternity as his body told him he couldn't continue, but his mind roared for his body to keep going. Finally, he made it back to starting position, "200!" Le shouted before collapsing in a heap.

"There it is." Kaen said happily.

"Who are you?" Lee sighed, he was thoroughly exhausted.

"Kaen Kanadzuchi." Kaen answered.

"What are you doing here?" Lee asked.

"Well, my mother is in the hospital for a sickness. I was visiting her, and just walking by when I happened to see you in here training." Kaen informed him, "I remembered you from your match with Gaara, and I was interested. You're very passionate about what you do."

"Yes! I cannot let my flames of youth grow cold!" Lee managed to shout with his normal exuberance. However, unlike most, Kaen didn't flinch away from his 'youthful' outburst. She simply smiled back at him.

"I see that, and I think you're doing a good job at it." Kaen said earnestly, "You're incredible, Lee. No one else could come back from that kind of injury so fast. I'm sure you're exhausted.

Lee tried to get to his feet, so he could get to his crutch, however his body was having none of it. He futilely tried to lift himself off the ground, but his arms were pudding and the rest of his body was sluggish and unresponsive. Kaen smile at his efforts before going and getting a wheelchair sitting next to the wall. She brought the chair over beside him and bent down to help him up.

"Thanks, Kaen." Lee said as she helped him up into the chair.

"My pleasure." The kunoichi answered as she retrieved Lee's crutch and handed it to him, "It's because you train so hard."

"I know, but I have to do this to prove my nindo. To prove that I can be a splendid ninja without using Genjutsu or Ninjutsu." Lee said.

"I see. Then how about this..." Kaen said as she began to roll Lee out of the room, "You help me and I help you? You train yourself into the ground, and I'll be there to pick you up. You help me with my stamina and taijutsu."

"Yosh!" Lee exclaimed, "It sounds like a most youthful agreement!"

"I'm glad you agree." Kaen said, "We can both help each other shine more brightly than ever, ne?"

"Yosh!" Lee shouted again.

Kaen smiled as she wheeled the fellow genin to his room. "Just don't expect me to wear green spandex."

"But, it's so comfortable." Lee replied, "And it moves so well, and...."

Kaen just laughed as Lee rattled off all the "advantages" of his clothing of choice.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata relaxed on top of the Hokage Monument, Hinata's head resting lightly on Naruto's shoulders and their hands entwined. More precisely, their "spot" on top of the head of the Yondaime. Actually, it had been Naruto's spot for many years, but since Hinata was such a big part of his life now it had turned into their spot. Naruto loved to come up here and just be. Originally, it was to get away from the hatred and looks of the villagers, but now it was much more enjoyable. With Hinata, he felt so much better coming here, it used to be a getaway, and it still was, but something was different about it now, he just couldn't describe it.

The two of them just sat there, watching the people going about their business. To them, they seemed to exist outside of time, outside of reality. Everything went on by them, but nothing touched them. It was a blissful experience, to say the least.

However, today it just wasn't meant to last.

"I figured I could find you two up here." Obito said as he strolled up from behind their perch.

"What's up, Obito-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"I was just informed of your decision by Tsunade-sama." Obito replied casually, "I must say I approve of your choice, and I'm glad you stayed."

"Why's that?" Naruto asked.

"Well that means I don't have to scrounge around for a replacement teammate when I put you guys in for the next chuunin exam, which is about three months away." Obito answered.

"That the only reason you wanted me to stay? To save you some trouble?" Naruto prodded, slightly put off.

"It was a big reason, yeah." Obito kidded, "However, while we will be returning to full time duty in a couple of days, I also want you two to know that I'm stepping up on the team's training. Especially yours, Naruto."

"What do you mean 'especially mine'?" Naruto asked.

"Honestly, I've told you that your chakra control was horrible coming out of the academy. I kind of refrained from teaching you anything too dangerous until I was sure you could control it. Now that you've mastered the Rasengan, though, I can really start teaching you the good stuff." Obito replied, "I might not be particularly good with wind or lightning, but I've picked up a few things with these eyes of mine."

"Awesome!" Naruto exclaimed. There was nothing he loved more than Hinata or ramen, but learning new jutsus came in a close third. "What are you going to teach me?"

"That's a secret." Obito replied with a jester's smile, "You'll figure out when we start training. I'm not going to be spending all my time on you though, I do have three other students to look after."

"Don't worry about me, Obito-sensei." Hinata spoke up, "I have Kiyoshi-sensei teaching me, and..."

"Nonsense, Hinata." Obito cut her off, "You were my student first, and I still think there are some things I can teach you that Kiyoshi hasn't or can't. However, I understand what a privilege it is to study under a Yonnin, so focus on his training first."

"Hai, sensei." Hinata agreed.

"Enjoy the next couple of days, you two. Cause, we're going to be training and working hard until the next chuunin exams, and you probably aren't going to get a lot of personal time." Obito advised.

"You got it." Naruto replied, wearing his trademark grin. Obito turned to leave his pupils to their own devices, "Oh, Obito-sensei!" Naruto called out.

"What, Naruto!" Obito replied, turning his head.

"We need to go pranking sometime! I have some awesome ideas, especially some stuff we can do to Obaasan!" Naruto told him.

Obito chuckled, "Yeah, maybe we should." With that, Obito vanished in a swirl of leaves.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata said as Naruto reclaimed his seat beside her.

"Yeah?" Naruto answered.

"Don't get yourself into trouble." Hinata said, "Tsunade-sama has enough trouble as it is..."

"Oh, come on, Hinata-hime." Naruto laughed, "A good prank makes everyone feel good, even the one getting pranked. She might be angry with us for a little while, but it'll be a release for her, you know."

"I guess...." Hinata answered, not quite convinced, "Just don't do anything too drastic, okay?"

"Alright, I promise I won't do anything too over the top." Naruto agreed. Suddenly his stomach rumbled, startling both himself and Hinata. "I didn't realize exactly how hungry I am. I guess we should head home, should be getting close to dinner time."

"Yes, I think your right." Hinata nodded.

The two took off from their spot hand in hand, happily lost in each other.

* * *

Tsunade was looking at the kunoichi in front of her. After Kiba had informed her that the job was done, Tsunade had dismissed him.

"So, did everything go well?" Tsunade asked.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Tayuya replied formally.

"Good to hear. So, I have a proposition for you." Tsunade said.

"What is it?" Tayuya asked.

"I have two teams that are going to need a fill in for the next chuunin exam, and I want you to fill-in on one of them." Tsunade told her.

"Is it my choice, or would I have to go where you say?" Tayuya inquired.

"Your choice, unless you can't come to a conclusion." Tsunade answered.

"I guess I'll do it." Tayuya replied, "So what are my choices?"

"Two of the rookie teams. Team 8 and Team 10. Here's the files on your prospective teammates." Tsunade said as she passed the portfolios to Tayuya. "Pick either one."

Tayuya picked up the files for Team 10 first. She saw the little girl and the fat kid from the group that had chased her down, and then there was some blond, snooty-looking bitch. Tayuya didn't like the look of her, so she had already pretty much decided to join Team 8.

However, just to make sure she opened up Team 8's files. She recognized Shiroi from when she had fought that pineapple-headed fuck. The female on the squad looked competent, even if she did have ridiculous flame-looking hair. However, what really settled the matter for her was when she looked at the last profile. She didn't know why, but almost jumped at the chance to be on a team with Kiba.

"I'll take Team 8." Tayuya said indifferently.

"Interesting, didn't think you'd want to see much more of Kiba after the last few days." Tsunade commented.

"Whatever, it'd probably be easier to put up with him than that snobbish looking bitch from Team 10." Tayuya replied.

Tsunade sighed, "That's fine. I'll let Kurenai know that you'll be joining her team for the chuunin exams."

"Anything else?" Tayuya asked.

"Ah, you probably already know this, but using your curse mark is strictly forbidden except under the most desperate circumstances." Tsunade said, "We have little information on the mark, and we don't know exactly what happens to the user, or if Orochimaru can track those with active marks."

"No problem, wasn't ever planning on using his damn 'gift' again." Tayuya replied.

"Good. Now, you may leave. Good luck, with your new team." Tsunade said.

"Thanks." Tayuya replied sarcastically, "Later, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade waved the former Oto-kunoichi away before turning back to the profiles of numerous prospective ninjas. Since Team 10 needed an extra member, and there weren't a lot of non-teamed genins right now, she was digging through the files of those ninjas that had failed the second genin test, hoping to find a diamond in the rough. However, she had one particular file that stood out among the rest, a boy named Sai. She thought it odd that the boy had no surname. However, as she read his profile, she soon realized why.

He was one of Danzo's orphans. It was almost guaranteed that the old war hawk recruited local orphans that shown talent in the ninja arts into the ROOT program, even though that program was supposedly defunct. If Danzo was still the same as he was before Tsunade left, and Tsunade was sure it was so, then Sai was probably already chuunin level. The only reason Danzo would try to insert one of his ROOT ninja into the general populace is for some sort of black op. The kid had to be a spy, but for what purpose Tsunade did not know.

Tsunade weighed her options, she could give Danzo the spy he wanted. However, sometimes spying on the enemy's spy was more beneficial than sending in your own spy. Although Tsunade wasn't sure if Danzo was an enemy, she was certain that he didn't have plans that were in the true best interests of Konoha. Also giving Team 10 a highly skilled fill in would give them better chances to get to the final rounds.

She sighed as she signed off on the approval sheet for Sai. As soon as possible, the young ROOT agent would be a temporary member of Team 10.

* * *

The next couple of days passed much to fast. It seemed like in no time Team 7 was back in there old stomping grounds, preparing for whatever training Obito decided to throw at them.

"Alright, guys." Obito said, "I know it's been a while since we trained as a team, but I hope your teamwork hasn't suffered. As you know, the chuunin exams in Suna will be coming up in roughly three months. We're going to focus on getting you guys ready. I'll be teaching you each new jutsus and skills. But, first I want to know what you think it is you need to improve on. The best and fastest way to improve yourself is to be able to acknowledge what your weaknesses are and correct them. So, let's start with you, Sakura."

"Well... while I'm good with medical jutsu and genjutsu, I don't have any real firepower." Sakura said, "I have below average strength, and I don't know any sort of advanced ninjutsu."

"Good, So for you, I think we'll work on some attack ninjutsu, so that way you can snare someone in a genjutsu then follow up with a ninjutsu that they can't dodge. Sasuke?" Obito moved on.

Sasuke thought for a moment, "I don't have much skill in genjutsu, I'm primarily a ninjutsu user. Thanks to my Sharingan, I don't have too many problems in combat. However, I think that I might be getting to reliant on my eyes."

"That's common for Uchiha." Obito replied, "Our eyes are one of our strongest assets, however if something happens to blind us. Something you saw with Zabuza back in the Land of Waves, we can be at a great disadvantage. So, for you we'll work on blind fighting and chakra sensory. You're next, Naruto."

"I don't have any weaknesses!" Naruto boasted.

"Come on, Naruto. Take this seriously. A Hokage cannot have any weaknesses in his skills." Obito said. Sakura was dangerously close to knocking the blond genin for a loop.

"Well, my taijutsu is below-average right now, but Kiyoshi-sensei says that's because I haven't really molded my own style yet, like Ero-sennin has. I suck at genjutsu. My chakra control, while better, is still kinda bad. Also, I seem to use Shadow Clone Jutsu too much, I rely on it. Also, I only have one ace technique. So I'm kinda a one-trick pony." Naruto analyzed himself, "Damn, I made myself sound like I suck."

"Because you do, idiot." Sasuke jokingly insulted.

"Shut up..." Naruto said with a pout.

"Alright," Obito cut in, "I know you've been working on your Taijutsu so that's being taken care of. We'll work on at least dispelling genjutsu, those techniques require precise chakra control so I don't expect you to be able to use them for a while. We'll work on strategies that don't involve the Shadow Clone Jutsu and some more ace ninjutsu to add to your repertoire." _Saddening to think he hasn't realized the full potential of the Shadow Clone Jutsu yet. If he only knew how much he could learn with it. However, it's something he should figure out on his own. _"Hinata."

"Well, um... I have my clan taijutsu, but because of the focus on that I lack long-range firepower. Although Kiyoshi-sensei has me working on that. The Byakugan allows me to see through most obstructions and genjutsu, so that's not really a problem." Hinata answered.

"I see Kiyoshi is already trying to make you a well-rounded ninja. That's good." Obito said, "Then we'll continue working on your long range attacks. Alright let's get to work."

* * *

The next month was rough. The training was intense, and continued even while Team 7 was on missions. Everything was seemed to run together. While everyone had training with Obito, Sasuke had extra lessons with Kakashi, Sakura was still learning from Rin and Kurenai, Hinata continued her training with Kiyoshi, and Naruto was taking extra lessons from anyone who would teach him. In fact, Naruto was so busy, he didn't even notice the arrival of October 10th.

Team 7 was enjoying a rare day off. They had no missions and Obito suggested they take a day to cool their jets. The whole team happily obliged. They decided to spend the day together. Naruto was surprised to see Sakura and Sasuke holding hands as they walked to Osaka's.

"So when did you two become a couple?" Naruto asked.

"What does it matter to you, idiot?" Sasuke answered Naruto's question with a question.

"Hey, come on, man." Naruto complained, "You shouldn't be keeping stuff like this from your best friend."

"Tch, you're annoying." Sasuke replied, "But, fine, it was right after you brought me back."

"Wow, you've been dating for a month? Why didn't you tell us." Naruto continued his questioning.

"I wouldn't have minded telling Hinata. But, you're annoying." Sasuke answered.

"You're mean..." Naruto pouted. Hinata had to stifle a giggle.

A few minutes later Team 7 was lounging in Osaka's waiting for their orders. Naruto and Sasuke had continued on in their normal banter with Naruto trying to get under Sasuke's skin and failing while Sasuke insulted him at almost every turn.

"Sometimes it's hard to believe they're best friends." Sakura whispered across the table.

"I know." Hinata replied.

"They act like an old married couple sometimes." Sakura giggled.

"Yes." Hinata agreed while trying to stifle her own giggle.

"Oi! What's so funny?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing. Nothing. Just girl talk." Sakura played it off.

"Whatever." Naruto replied.

Team 7 enjoyed some small talk while they enjoyed their dinner. The two couples exchanged stories on places they had been and things they had done. Much to Sasuke's chagrin, Sakura brought up the story of when she had drug him out to the dance hall recommended by Naruto and Hinata. As it turned out, Sasuke couldn't dance a lick, seeing as how he never thought of it as being a useful skill. He had ended up using his Sharingan to learn how to dance that night, so the night wasn't completely ruined by his inability to dance.

After a few humorous stories, and the retelling of that fateful night in the forest, a story that brought Sakura near to tears. The four of them were preparing to leave.

"So what's my half of the bill, Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

"Huh? You don't have part of the bill, it's my treat, idiot." Sasuke replied.

"Why you being so nice all of a sudden?" Naruto prodded.

"It's your birthday, isn't it?" Sasuke answered with his own question.

"Huh?" Naruto asked dumbly.

"Don't tell me you forgot your own birthday!" Sakura all but shouted at him.

"Uh... maybe." Naruto replied with a sheepish grin. Sakura promptly bonked him on the head.

"Idiot, how do you forget your own birthday?" Sakura asked indignantly.

"Pretty easily when no one gives a shit and the only people who seek you out are drunks looking on getting some measure of revenge for thirteen years ago." Naruto responded despondently. That sentence shut Sakura up as quickly as her tirade had began.

"I'm sorry, Naruto. I-I never knew." Sakura said.

"Don't worry about it. Thanks for the treat Sasuke." Naruto replied as he stood to leave, however he didn't manage to get out of the booth. He looked at what had stopped him, to see a pair of pale hands attached to his arm.

"Please, stay here, Naruto-kun." Hinata pleaded, "There's something important we need to discuss."

Naruto looked at his girlfriend, clearly wanting to leave. Birthdays had never been a happy time for him, and Sakura had just made it worse. He was about to say something, but he never got the chance.

"Please, Naruto-kun." Hinata pleaded again.

Naruto sighed and relented and sat back down. However a very awkward silence had crept over the table. That was until the waitress reappeared, carrying a very large cake.

"Otanjoubi omedetou! Happy birthday!" The waitress called out as she laid the cake on the table.

"What?" Naruto said as he looked at the orange iced cake.

"Happy birthday Naruto!" Sakura shouted.

"Happy birthday, idiot." Sasuke said calmly.

"Happy birthday, Naruto-kun." Hinata said with as much love an warmth she could muster.

Naruto just simply stared at the cake. It was rather plain with just orange icing and thirteen candles. He really didn't know what to say, it was the first time he had ever gotten a birthday cake or anything like it.

"You have to blow out the candles and make a wish, Naruto-kun." Hinata prompted.

Naruto looked at her for a moment before nodding and turning his attention back to the candles. He didn't have anything to wish for, he felt he had everything he ever needed or wanted. _I just don't want to lose this..._ Naruto thought as he blew out his candles. He figured that would work as his wish.

"What did you wish for, idiot?" Sasuke asked.

"If I told you, then I wouldn't get my wish, would I?" Naruto countered.

"Present time!" Sakura called out as she brought out a small box wrapped in pink. Sasuke also retrieved a small box wrapped in plain blue. Hinata produced an orange wrapped box with black swirls printed on it.

Naruto opened Sakura's present first and inside were several well made kunai.

"I didn't really know what you wanted, so I got something you could use. Their made out of slightly stronger materials than regular kunai, so use them well." Sakura said as he looked at the weapons.

"Thanks, Sakura." Naruto replied as he tucked the box of kunai away. He then turned his attention to Sasuke's present. He unwrapped it to find a pair of leather gloves with metal plates on the backs, like the ones Obito wore.

"I figured you'd like those, I thought I heard you say you wanted some." Sasuke said.

"Yeah, thanks, Sasuke." Naruto replied as he tried the gloves on. They were a little big now, but he figured that was for the best, so he wouldn't have to replace them soon. He finally turned his attention to the final present, and he figured the best one. He tore open the orange and black paper and opened the leather case that held his present.

He was shocked as he held up a locket. It was golden, he assumed it was gold, and the chain link for the necklace was obviously well made. Hinata had obviously bought the thing from one of the local jewel crafters. He opened the locket to find pictures already inside it, one was a very small version of their team photo and the other was a portrait of Hinata.

"Thank, hime. Now I'll always have you close to my heart." Naruto said as he undid the clasp on the chain and put the locket on.

"Well, I figured since you got me a necklace, I should return the favor." Hinata said as she took out the Shodaime's necklace that Naruto had won in the bet with Tsunade.

"Thanks guys, this means a lot to me. First birthday I've ever actually gotten gifts." Naruto said.

"You're not done yet." A familiar voice called out from behind him. Naruto spun around in the booth to see Obito and Rin strolling towards his booth, they carried a Uchiha colored package. Obito handed the present to Naruto.

Naruto tore into the present only to be slightly disappointed when he saw it was a black bound book.

"A book?" Naruto questioned.

"Look at the front cover." Obito told him. Naruto turned the book over, the cover read _1001 Greatest Ninja Pranks_

"What's this?" Naruto asked.

"One of my favorite books." Obito said, "I know your a prankster, so I figured you'd get a kick out of some of these like I did. Might give you some ideas too, eh?"

"Thanks, Obito-sensei!" Naruto shouted happily. This was quite possibly be the first book he ever enjoyed reading.

The birthday party now concluded, Team 7 left the restaurant and hung around Konoha, enjoying their free day before training resumed the next day.

* * *

The next day training did resume, and did not let up for the next two months. Each member of Team 7 was confident that they had gotten stronger, and was eager to prove it. Early one mild December morning Teams 7, 8, and 10 along with Team Guy and several other Konoha teams met at the gates of Konoha. They were given their passports and set off towards Suna, dreams of becoming chuunin dancing on all the prospects heads.

* * *

A/N

I'm so sorry that this chapter came out later than normal. I had a school project to finish, and my final exams this week, not to mention I found the wonderful anime Clannad and have been watching almost like a religion.

On another note, I personally recommend that you go see the movie Avatar. It is quite possibly one of the best movies I have seen in the past decade, I loved every second of it. This is one movie that you HAVE to go see.

I was pleasantly surprised at the response the last chapter got. I got over 2,000 hits the day it released, which is a record for the story, and 18 reviews, another record. So thanks to all of you out there reading and reviewing, it's appreciated more than you know.

I'm glad it seems most of you are accepting, if not happy, about some of the pairings. I know some of them are slightly off the wall, like Haku/Ino and the potential Kiba/Tayuya, not to mention that there's quite a few canon characters hooking up with OCs. Thanks for your support, and don't be afraid to let me know what you really think. I'm always looking for ways to improve my writing and story, so your help is greatly appreciated.

I hope you enjoyed chapter 16

Edit: Just saw the error with the lee scene. I have no idea why the breaks popped up in the middle of the scene where there was supposed to be dialogue. Hopefully, it is now fixed. Sorry if this caused any problems.


	17. Chapter 17 Second Exam Begins

Four Man Squads

Chapter 17 - The Second Chuunin Exams Begin

The caravan slowly made it's way from Konoha to Suna. Ninjas could easily make the trip from Konoha to Suna or back in two or three days. However, Tsunade had decided to use the hopeful chuunins as an escort of sorts for a trade caravan from Konoha to Suna. Since the cargo wagons couldn't move as fast as a ninja, for obvious reasons, the trip was probably going to be slightly longer than a week. The caravan was currently in its third day of travel.

"So I'll ensnare them in genjutsu while the rest of you take them out." Tayuya said as she talked to her new teammates. She had spent the last couple of months training with them and their actual teammate. She was taking Shino's place on Team 8 just for the chuunin exams. She was going over some basic strategies with her team. She noticed that team had a lot of firepower. Kiba had his animal mimicry, Kaen had tons of fire jutsu, and Shiroi was a wiz with a sword. Tayuya, however, didn't have much in terms of raw offensive force. She had her Doki summons and that was about it. This meant she was going to be filling in a more support role.

"A basic, but effective strategy." Shiroi commented, "As long as we don't run into one of Konoha's other teams or Gaara's team, I think we'll be alright with just that plan. However, what if they break your genjutsu and come after you, what then?"

"I'll find you." Tayuya answered, "You can get them off my back long enough for me to reestablish control. Essentially, I'm going to try to control the enemy, you'll be holding down the front lines, and Kaen and Kiba will be strikers."

"Sounds good to me!" Kiba said with pleasure.

"Yeah." Kaen agreed.

"Just remember, even though it sounds good on paper, things can turn to shit out there." Shiroi said, remembering the recent mission to retrieve Sasuke, "So be ready for anything."

"Yeah. Shit almost never goes to plan." Tayuya agreed, patting her pack full of kunai and shuriken. She had taken at least one lesson to heart from her battle with a certain pineapple-headed chuunin.

Team 8 was currently riding along in one of the wagons, taking it easy. They'd been taking shifts with the other teams in helping watch over the caravan with the other chuunin that had been assigned to the task. Kurenai, their Jonin instructor, was working patrols with Shino, leaving the team with some time to relax.

"So how does this thing go?" Tayuya asked the team. "I know you all did this once already, but it's my first time."

"Well, I don't know if it'll be the same as the one in Konoha. Put there will be two preliminary tests of some sort, then if too many people pass an elimination round to cut the amount of finalists. Then there will be a month waiting period, and then the third exam will take place. Depending on your performance during the tournament-style third exam, you will be promoted to chuunin or stay a genin." Shiroi informed her.

"Eh, the first two parts will be easy." Kiba boasted, "Especially since we've done this before."

"Hey, don't go getting a head of yourself killer." Kaen taunted as she put her teammate in a head lock, "For all we know, it could be completely different this time around."

"Yes, I highly doubt that they'd just rehash the same stuff over and over again." Shiroi answered.

"Whatever." Kiba said as he shook himself free of Kaen, "We'll still blow through it. We're too amazing not to."

* * *

Team 10 was still trying to get used to their new teammate. He was slightly unnerving. He never said much, and he never truly smiled. Shikamaru didn't like him because the guy seemingly hid behind a facade and had no true emotions. Chouji didn't care for him because Shikamaru didn't particularly care for him. Ino hated him because the first time they had met, Sai had called her ugly. If Haku hadn't been there to reign Ino in, she would've beat the new guy into a paste, or at least attempted to. Tsuneni didn't really care one way or the other, as long as the guy did his part, but she had to admit his ink abilities were intriguing.

"So, what does this exam involve?" Sai asked his teammates.

"It's troublesome..." Shikamaru replied. He was too lazy to give a full explanation.

"You better get that laziness out of your system, Shikamaru." Chouji commented, "Or else Temari is going to beat it out of you when we get there."

"Troublesome woman..." Shikamaru replied as he plodded along with his team. They were at the front of the caravan, acting as the front guard.

"It shouldn't be too hard, Sai." Tsuneni replied, "Some exams testing your ninja skills followed up by a tournament style final exam, where you are judged to see if you have what it takes to be a chuunin."

Ino was simply refusing to talk to the pale, black-haired boy. She didn't see any need to.

Sai smiled one of those fake smiles of his, "Thank you, Tsuneni."

"It was nothing." Tsuneni replied. She found the artist interesting. He was an enigma that begged to be solved. She would have to keep her eyes open around him. There had to be some reason he seemingly had no emotions. Tsuneni liked to keep her emotions in check, but she felt them and they did get the better of her at times. This boy, however, never seemed to feel anything, ever.

"Man, this trip is taking too long." Shikamaru complained, "I'm so tired of walking..."

"Why are you here for anyway, Shikamaru? You're already a chuunin." Ino asked.

"I was assigned to watch over this caravan, and then I'm to stay in Suna, along with Shino, as 'good will ambassadors' for the duration of the exams. However, I think that the Hokage just didn't want to truly separate us from our teams. I'm not complaining though, it just means a month or so that I get to hang around and do almost nothing." Shikamaru stated

"Lucky you..." Chouji said.

"Hey, at least you get to meet Chiyoko again." Shikamaru said.

"Yeah." Chouji replied, "She said that she would show me all the best places to eat. Can't wait to get back to the clan with the information, we've have little information on the food establishments in Suna."

"Do you think pursuing a relationship with a shinobi of another hidden village is a wise course of action?" Sai asked. "Relationships and emotions are useless to a ninja."

"Maybe for you." Chouji replied, "However, I wouldn't be as strong as I am if it wasn't for the bonds I've made with my teammates."

"Really?" Sai inquired.

"Yes, really." Chouji answered simply.

Sai apparently reflected on what Chouji had said, and the rest of their shift was spent in relative silence. The only conversation sprouting up was Ino trying to talk to Tsuneni about what kind of fashions they could pick up in Suna. Tsuneni simply tuned the blond out, not particularly interested in such things. Ino continued her conversation with herself, however, constantly muttering to herself about how she was going to get several new outfits while she was there, and get Haku complimenting outfits so they'd be the cutest couple in Konoha.

"Women are so..." Shikamaru started.

"Troublesome?" Chouji finished for Shikamaru. Chouji was beginning to wonder what type of person Haku was since Ino didn't drive him crazy.

"Yeah." Shikamaru replied as he turned his eyes skyward, intent on enjoying the scenery.

* * *

"So, what do you think is going to happen this time?" Naruto asked as Team 7 trailed behind the rest of the caravan. They were currently the rear guard of the caravan.

"Who knows." Sasuke answered, "Whatever it is, I'm sure we'll be fine. We got Sharingan, Byakugan, a medical-ninja, and you can make enough clones to fill a small town. I doubt there's much that they can throw at us that we can't handle."

"Yeah, we're awesome." Naruto replied with a grin.

"But, that doesn't mean you can get a cocky now, Naruto." Sakura admonished him, fist poised to strike him over the head if he said something stupid.

"Sakura, while it might be fun for you and mildly entertaining at times, could you please refrain from using my boyfriend as your personal punching bag?" Hinata asked in a falsely sweet tone.

"Umm.... yeah, sure, Hinata." Sakura replied.

"Thank you. I would have hated to had to 'practice' the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four palms on you." Hinata said, still using that faux-sweet voice.

"No problem." Sakura said. Was Hinata always like this? She could be kinda scary when she wanted to be.

"Still, Sakura has a point. Just because we have a good base of abilities, and I'm sure have more than enough skill to handle whatever comes our way in the exams, we have to make sure not to underestimate anything or anyone." Sasuke said, getting the conversation back on track.

"I always give it all I got." Naruto said, "So no worries there."

"I just wonder what kind of tests we'll have to go through." Hinata said.

"I'm sure they'll be similar to what we did in Konoha. Something to test information gathering skills, a survival and teamwork test, and then we know what the third exam will be." Sakura answered.

"Most likely." Sasuke agreed.

"When does it start?" Naruto asked.

"Do you never listen to a briefing?" Sakura asked incredulously. She was fighting the urge to whack Naruto upside his dumb head.

"I kinda slept through it, heh." Naruto replied, rubbing the back of his head with a half-smile on his face.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata said in a slightly annoyed tone. She loved him, but he really needed to take things a little more seriously than he does at times.

"The exams are scheduled to start two days after our estimated arrival in Suna. So roughly a week from now. Pay attention more, idiot." Sasuke informed him.

"Yeah, yeah. I get it." Naruto replied, "Man, I'm hungry. Is it time for dinner yet?"

"Still got about an hour." Sasuke replied.

"Damn..." Naruto said as he slumped slightly, continuing his march along the road.

* * *

The remaining days of the caravans trip to Suna passed by uneventfully. Despite the rumors of bandit attacks along the road, nothing bothered the merchants and chuunin hopefuls. As such, The caravan was trekking across the desert and towards Suna.

The caravan arrived to the gates of Suna precisely on time. The caravan was stopped by the guards. Everyone's paperwork was being checked to make sure nothing unwanted was entering the village.

"Wow, this place is so different from Konoha." Naruto said as he looked at the stair-step walls that flanked the gates. "There's no green anywhere!"

"Yeah, they don't call it Sunagakure for nothing, idiot." Sasuke said.

"Alright guys." Obito called out to his team, they're papers had been cleared, "We're cleared to enter, so let's get set up in a hotel, then we can see about getting dinner."

"Hai!" Came the unanimous call of Team 7 as they followed Obito into Suna. They were followed by Teams 8, 10, and Guy. The teams walked along together, deciding to stay at the same hotel. They trudged through the moderate traffic of Suna's sandy streets, looking for a decent place.

"Chouji-kun!" an energetic voice called out from across the street the Konoha nins were walking down. Most of the group turned to see who was calling out for Chouji. They watched a familiar Suna kunoichi with dark red hair and brown eyes run up to the Akimichi.

"Konnichiwa, Chiyoko." Chouji greeted the hyper kunoichi as she neared.

"Are you all here for the chuunin exam?" Chiyoko asked.

"Yeah. We're currently looking for a hotel to stay at while we are here." Chouji replied.

"Oh, I know of a good place. It's near a bunch of good restaurants and shops." Chiyoko replied, "I can show you guys if you want."

"I believe that would be good." Kurenai answered.

"Yeah, sounds good to me." Obito agreed.

"How nice to find someone in this town filled with the fires of youth!" Guy exclaimed.

"Ummm.... Okay." Chiyoko replied, "Just follow me, 'kay."

The group of Konoha shinobi did as she said and followed her to a nice, mid-scale hotel in the middle of one of Suna's more frequented commercial areas.

"This is a pretty nice place. Definitely good enough for the time we'll be here." Obito said as he looked at the building. "Thank you, Chiyoko."

"No problem." Chiyoko answered happily.

"Alright, let's get checked in, then we'll see about getting something to eat." Kurenai instructed. Everyone did as they were instructed. Team 7 ended up getting two rooms, one for Hinata and Sakura, and the other for Naruto, Sasuke, and Obito. After putting up their packs and getting acquainted with what would be their home for the next month or so, they returned to the hotel lobby to meet up with the rest of the group. Chiyoko had waited around for the rest of them.

Team 7 was the first back to the lobby. Naruto looked over at their unofficial guide, "So were are we going to go eat at? Are there any good ramen places around here?"

"Not in this area." Chiyoko replied, "However, there are a couple of stands elsewhere you might like, though I'm not the biggest fan of ramen myself. There's a good restaurant a few blocks away, I figured we could go there since it's close, if you all want."

"Sounds like a plan." Obito answered. "How about it?"

"Yes, sounds good to me." Sakura agreed. Sasuke nodded in approval as well.

"Thank you for your help, Chiyoko-san." Hinata said.

"No problem." Chiyoko replied, "Any friend of Chouji-kun's is a friend of mine."

A few minutes later everyone was gathered up in the lobby and the large group left for the restaurant. They arrived after walking for a couple of blocks. The place was a nice looking establishment that obviously catered to the middle-class.

The waiter's eyes lit up as he saw the large group of foreign ninja walk in the front entrance.

"Table for twenty-three, please." Chiyoko asked politely as the waiter stared at the group dumbfounded.

"We don't have a table that can sit that many people..." The waiter said dumbly.

"Then just sit us at different tables, as long as we're close to each other." Chiyoko replied.

"Nonsense." An older gentleman said as he walked over to the group, "If you give us just a moment, we'll rearrange a few tables so you can all sit together."

"Thank you, Nanasawa-san." Chiyoko replied.

"No problem, Chiyoko." The older man replied, "Come, Yuuhei, we have some tables to move."

"Hai." The waiter said as he followed his boss.

A few moments later the group was sitting at a table made out of five smaller tables, exchanging small talk back and forth while waiting for their meals. Obito couldn't help but notice the seating placements. It seems quite a few of the younger ninjas were finding, or at least trying to find that special someone. He looked around the table to see Naruto and Hinata sitting together as well as Sasuke and Sakura, Neji and Tenten, Haku and Ino, Lee and Kaen, and Chouji and Chiyoko. Even Asuma and Kurenai were getting in the act. Obito could only smile and hope that they ended up as happy as he was with Rin.

"So we got a couple of days before the start of the exams, what are you guys going to do?" Chiyoko asked the Konoha ninjas.

Everyone took turns explaining what they were going to do. For the couples, they mainly planned on being with each other. The others were all seemingly doing nothing or training.

"What about you Chouji-kun." Chiyoko asked the portly ninja sitting beside her.

"I remember someone promising to show me all the best places to eat in Suna." Chouji replied, "I plan on seeing that promise is fulfilled."

"You think you can keep up?" Chiyoko teased.

"Of course, no one can eat more than me." Chouji replied.

"No one, until now." Chiyoko retorted.

The rest of their meal was spent enjoying the food and some humorous conversations. Tayuya, in particular, got quite a few laughs at Kiba's expense. After dinner, everyone split up to do whatever it was that they wanted to do.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata were quietly wandering around Suna, just taking in the sights of this new village. They were also familiarizing themselves with the general layout of the village, just in case.

"I can't wait for the exams to start." Naruto said excitedly as they walked.

"Why's that, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"Because, I know we're going to make chuunin this time." Naruto said confidently.

"Yes, I'm sure you're right." Hinata fed of his confidence.

"Just wait, hime. We'll do this then before you know it we'll be jonin, then you'll be the Head of the Hyuga and I'll be the Hokage." Naruto continued.

"We'll be quite the pair, won't we?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah, we'll be the greatest husband and wife team that Konoha has ever seen!" Naruto said with exuberance. This statement made Hinata stop in her tracks.

"W-w-wife?" Hinata stammered, audible only to herself.

"Hime? What's wrong?" Naruto asked when she stopped.

Hinata shook her head and brushed it off, "Nothing, Naruto-kun." _He wants to marry me?!_

Naruto looked at her skeptically, "Alright, if you say so." _I wonder what that was about..._

* * *

The two days passed relatively quickly for the Konoha ninja. They watched as more ninja from foreign countries entered Sun for the exams. There were teams from Kusa, Ame, Getsu, Taki, and Yuki. All in all there were fewer contestants than the previous exam in Konoha. Mainly because Konoha had supplied well over half of the hopefuls from the last exam, and not all those teams decided to make the trek to Suna.

The exams were to start in one of the conference rooms of Ninja Ops building, a large tower, seemingly made of sand. Naruto and the rest of the revamped Konoha Sixteen lounged easily, waiting for the exams to start. They saw some faces that they remembered vaguely from six months ago. Naruto perked up when he saw Gaara's team enter the room.

"Gaara!" Naruto called out. Chiyoko rushed over to the group, followed by the rest of her team.

"Hello, Naruto." Gaara greeted as Chiyoko sought out Chouji and Temari struck up a conversation with Tsuneni.

"Been a while, man. I haven't seen you since I got into town, where you been?" Naruto asked.

"I'm sorry, I was out on a training trip. Sometimes, I just go out into the desert for a few days. I just got back this morning." Gaara answered.

"No problem, we have to hang out sometime after these exams are over." Naruto said.

"Yeah, We gotta teach you how to kick back and relax." Shiroi butted into the conversation.

"I suppose." Gaara answered indifferently.

"Gaara!" Lee shouted.

"Rock Lee." Gaara turned to face the green-clad genin.

"I am looking forward to our rematch." Lee said with vigor, "This time I will show you the true power of my flames of youth!"

"Yes, I am looking forward to it too," Gaara said as he turned his attention to Naruto and Sasuke, "As well as a rematch with the two of you."

"Heh." Sasuke smirked.

"You bet! This is going to be the greatest chunin exam ever!" Naruto said with exuberance matching Lee's.

"Yosh!" Lee shouted as he fed off Naruto's excitement.

Suddenly a loud voice boomed from the front of the conference room, "Alright, sit down and shut up. My name is Azumamaro Nakanishi, and I'm the proctor of your first exam. This test is simple, yet difficult. You are going to be playing a spy game." Everyone looked to the front to see a man with brown hair flowing down to his waist and a bushy rust colored beard. He was wearing pretty standard Suna ninja gear.

"A spy game?" Kiba asked.

"Yes, We have 33 teams competing this time around, so I have 33 'targets' randomly chosen from Suna's chuunin ranks. You're job is to find, spy on, and then report back on the activities of your target. You must do all of this, and not get caught. Each target will have two 'bodyguards', who will also be chuunins. You will have exactly twenty-four hours to complete this task. As you all know, spying and information gathering is an integral part of a ninja's existence. The ability to gather information stealthily and without anyone noticing is paramount for the success of many missions you might be given during your career. Also, this is a strictly non-combat scenario, you are not to attack the target, bodyguards, or other teams. Anyone that doesn't follow this rule will immediately be disqualified along with their team. Do I make myself clear?" Azumamaro stated the rules.

"Hai!" came the uniform reply.

"Good, does anyone have any questions?" Azumamaro asked the crowd.

"How are we supposed to find our target?" a Kusa genin asked.

"That's for you to find out. All I will tell you is that all of your targets have explicit orders not to leave the village and to make themselves visible, as if they are not expecting to be hunted and followed. Other than that, it's up to you to find your target." Azumamaro answered. "Anymore questions?"

No one else said anything.

"Good." Azumamaro said, "Now I'll be handing out your assignments. After everyone gets their assigned target, the test will begin at the top of the next hour, whish most likely means this shindig will be starting at 9 A.M. You have until then to prepare yourselves however you like so long as you don't leave this room. Let us begin..."

* * *

"Hinata?" Sasuke asked his whole question in one word.

Hinata nodded and made a single seal, "Byakugan!"

Each of them had memorized their target, a blond with a distinctive scar on his left cheek. With Hinata's Byakugan, finding their target should be easier.

"Any luck?" Naruto asked his love.

Hinata shook her head in a negative, "Not in this area."

"Did everyone remember to bring radios?" Sakura asked.

Everyone nodded and pulled out little handless radios that fit around one ear and was attached to a choker that held the talk button and various other options for the device.

"What channel?" Naruto asked.

"We'll use 7. Since all the Konoha teams know that's our channel. I just hope the other teams aren't using similar radios." Sakura replied. Everyone complied and adjusted their radios accordingly. Luckily, the channel was indeed vacant.

"Alright I'll take the north, Hinata can take the south, Sakura east, and Naruto you get the west. Sound good?" Sasuke suggested.

The three other members of Team 7 nodded and the team split up.

* * *

Team 8 had their plan of attack all set up. However, Kiba wished that they had Shino for this. His insects could have made this test easy. However, they had to make do with what they had.

"Alright so we're clear on how we're going to do this?" Shiroi asked, earning a nod in response from his teammates, "Alright then let's do this."

Team 8 split into two groups. Kiba and Tayuya searched the northern half of the village while Shiroi and Kaen searched the southern half.

* * *

"I'm on it." Sai said as he began to paint a great many birds. "Chouju Giga!"

The birds spread out from the parchment of Sai's scroll, filling the sky.

"That's pretty neat." Chouji commented.

"Yes, very useful." Tsuneni added.

"The birds will search until they find the target." Sai informed them, "After they find her they will inform me of where she is."

Chouji and Tsuneni nodded. Ino didn't say anything or respond to Sai in any way, he was still getting the silent treatment.

* * *

Hinata was quickly scanning everything around the area she was searching. Thankfully, the Byakugan could penetrate solid objects, making it easier for her to search the area faster. Suddenly the caught a glimpse of familiar looking blond hair. She quickly sped over to the man to see the scar on his face that told her he was their target. She backed off enough to make sure that she wouldn't be noticed, and radioed her teammates.

"I've found the target. Currently trailing him northbound. He's heading in the general direction of Suna's Ninja Ops building." Hinata said into the microphone.

"Good job Hinata!" Naruto shouted over the radio, "On my way."

"Making my way there." Sakura replied.

"Keep us informed Hinata." Sasuke said, "Hopefully we'll rendezvous in a few minutes."

Hinata trailed the target, trying to deduce who his bodyguards were. Sakura was the first to find her, followed by Sasuke, then Naruto.

"I have an idea of who the bodyguards are." Hinata said as her teammates started to make plans. "The guy in the red t-shirt with black hair, and the woman wearing the tan kimono. They are pretty good at hiding it, but they're always somewhere nearby."

"Good job." Sasuke complimented, "Now how do we want to follow through?"

"Leave it to me." Naruto boasted.

"Naruto, out of all of us, you're probably the worst at stealth." Sasuke replied.

"Maybe." Naruto smiled, "But I'm the best at disguises! Watch, Sexy Jutsu!"

Suddenly Naruto transformed into a female version of himself wearing a little black dress that left little to the imagination.

"Naruto!" Sakura said in anger. She was close to hitting him, warnings from Hinata be damned.

"No, Sakura. This might work, though not that in particular." Sasuke said, "He can effectively create a small army of tails using transformations and his Shadow Clones.

"Yeah." Naruto said happily as he reverted into his normal self.

"Alright, so how about this." Sasuke postulated, "Naruto makes twenty clones and transforms them to look like various other people, we use those clones to follow the target from up close while the real Naruto and the rest of us watch safely from a distance."

"Sounds like a plan." Naruto said as he quickly made twenty clones.

"Transformation Jutsu." All of the clones called out in unison. Soon a amalgamation of townspeople were standing before them. There was Naruto's female version, this time wearing a more modest orange kimono trimmed in black. There was also what looked like an old married couple, a group of kids, and various other normal looking men and women.

"Good job, Naruto." Sasuke commented, "These should be fine."

All of the clones nodded and took off, getting into position.

"Ready, Naruto?" Sasuke asked. Naruto nodded and set his clones into action. The first to approach the target was the female version of Naruto.

The blonde man took quick notice of Naruto's female clone. Though it wasn't part of the plan to make direct contact, the target had other ideas.

"Hello there, cutie, what's your name?" the blond man asked.

"Ummm..." the clone quickly tried to think of a name, "I'm Naruko. Who might you be?"

"Naruko?" Sakura whispered to the real Naruto.

Naruto shrugged, "I don't have any control over it."

"The name's Akio." The man replied, "You new around here, never seen you before."

"Yes." Naruko answered, "Just moved here a few days ago. Still trying to get used to everything."

"I see, where are you from?" Akio kept up his string of questions.

"Land of Waves." Naruko replied, "I must admit, it's much different here. I was used to living around water, but..."

Akio laughed, "It's understandable. Listen, I'm looking for some company, so how about I show you around town."

Naruko smiled, "I would like that very much."

"Okay, just grab onto my arm here, miss, and we'll be on our way." Akio said offering his left arm for Naruko to grab onto.

Naruko took the arm and walked along with the target. It wasn't planned for, but this worked just as well as anything else.

Naruko and Akio walked down the street. Team 7 stuck to the rooftops carefully watching, but making sure to not be seen. Hinata was easily observing everything with her Byakugan, the bodyguards didn't seem to be aware of their presence.

"So what did you use to do for fun back in Wave?" Akio asked.

Naruko looked at him sideways, "Life there wasn't fun for a while. We were oppressed by a man named Gatou. However, Tazuna, an architect, finished construction on a bridge to the mainland. I left as soon as it was completed, and have been wandering from town to town hoping to find someplace to settle down."

"You can settle down here with me." Akio replied. "I'll show you a good time every day. You can forget all about you bad past."

"This guy makes me sick." Sakura whispered as she watched on.

"Maybe, but we're on a mission." Sasuke replied, "We'll just have to deal with it. How do you think the clone will fare Naruto?"

"Well it thinks and acts like me. So it would do what I would do in that situation, which is follow along with this whole thing and then just ditch the guy once the mission is over. Might even prank him a few times just for good measure." Naruto answered.

"I hope so." Sakura said as she turned her attention back to Naruko and Akio.

"Maybe." Naruko replied to Akio's advance, "How do I know you're my type? How do you know I'm your type? How do you even know I'm interested in men at all?"

"I, uh, well..." Akio stumbled, "You don't look like a lesbian..."

Naruko laughed, "I'm just kidding with you, Akio-kun. You don't take jokes very well, do you?"

Akio faked a laugh of his own, "Maybe I don't, but I'm sure you can teach me. Maybe we should go back to my place so we can begin my lessons?"

Naruko quit laughing immediately, "Do you think I'm that easy, Akio-kun?"

"I didn't mean to imply that." Akio said defensively.

"Really, now?" Naruko replied, "It certainly sounded like your intentions were definitely of a more sexual nature."

"Well, not entirely." Akio tried to fix his blunder.

Naruko laughed again, "You really need to learn how to take a joke."

Akio just looked at her, "You're killing me, Naruko-chan."

"Come on, Akio-kun, you know you like it." Naruko teased.

"Only because your so cute." Akio replied.

"You only like me because I'm cute?" Naruko whined.

"Well, yeah. I mean we just met, I don't know a lot about you, other than you're from the Land of Waves and you have a very wicked sense of humor." Akio answered honestly.

"Well, then I guess we should take the chance to get to know each other. How about some lunch?" Naruko suggested.

"Sounds like a plan." Akio agreed.

* * *

Naruko and Akio had a nice day out on the town, with Team 7 closely keeping watch. To be more precise, it was a nice day for Naruko. Akio, on the other hand was living a nightmare. Every time he tried to make a move on the blond bombshell that was keeping him company, something terrible would happen. First it was those damn annoying kids and that damn soccer ball. He could have sworn they had broken his nose. He didn't know kids could kick that hard. Then after that, he'd been just about to seal the deal when that elderly couple showed up and asked him for help with carrying some bags, since he was a "big, strapping young man." Naruko wouldn't let him tell them off, and he didn't want to look any worse in front of her. After that it had been one interruption after another. He could of sworn all of Suna was out to get him today.

Finally, they were winding down to the end of the night. Akio was walking Naruko back to his place, even though she didn't know that. He was pretty sure, he could still get lucky tonight. He hadn't seen hide nor hair of the kids that were supposed to be trailing him, and neither had Hiromi or Yuji. He figured the kids never found him, for he was sure he could tell if a bunch of genin were following him.

"Ah, would you look there, we've came to my place." Akio said as he pointed to the apartment building he lived at. "You wanna come in for some tea and relax for a bit."

Naruko smiled back at him, "I would love to, but it's getting late, and I should probably be getting back to the hotel."

"Oh, nonsense." Akio reassured her, "It'll only be a moment, and I'm sure your thirsty."

Naruko didn't know what to do. She knew that the original Naruto and the rest of Team 7 were watching from nearby, but they couldn't blow their cover. She couldn't see any of the other clones that could help her out of the situation. She knew his intentions weren't good, and she couldn't afford to be found out. If he figured out she was a clone, then he'd know he had been followed.

"No thanks." Naruko replied, "We just met, I don't think it would be appropriate for me to go into your home."

"I insist." Akio was undeterred.

"I really would rather not. Maybe we can meet tomorrow?" Naruko answered.

Akio grabbed Naruko roughly by the arm, "No, really, I insist."

"Stop..." Naruko pleaded, "You're hurting me." She had to hope that maybe the bodyguards would stop this.

"Akio, I know you are 'aggressive' when you pursue the fairer sex." the male bodyguard said as he appeared, "However, could you do this some other time, we are in the middle of an exam."

"Shut up, Yuji." Akio replied.

"You motherfucker, you let her go right now before I send you to hell!" the female bodyguard shouted as she ran up to the scene.

"Mind your own business, Hiromi!" Akio yelled back, "This is between and this pretty little one here."

"Please, make him stop." Naruko begged the two other Suna ninja. If she were a normal girl, she was sure he would probably be hurting her. However, his grip wasn't all that strong for a ninja. She saw her way out of the situation, and she was going to take it.

"You heard her, bastard. Your night of fun is over." Hiromi told Akio.

"Tch, fine, whatever." Akio said as he released his grip on Naruko, "Bet you weren't worth all the trouble I went through today anyway, bitch." Akio then stormed upstairs to his apartment.

"I apologize for him." Yuji told Naruko, "He's always been like that. He believes that women should just bow at his feet and be thankful he pays attention to them."

"I'm so gonna kill that bastard one of these days." Hiromi commented.

"Arigato." Naruko said as she bowed, "I believe I'll be heading back to my hotel now."

"Think you'll be alright by yourself?" Yuji asked.

"Yes, I'll be fine." Naruko said. "Don't worry about it."

"Alright, take care of yourself then." Hiromi said.

"Hai, Ja ne." Naruko said as she left the two bodyguards.

After Naruko made it a few blocks away and was sure she wasn't followed, she dispersed.

"That guy is a creep." Sakura said as Team 7 watched Akio enter his apartment.

"Yes, he is." Hinata agreed.

"That may be." Sasuke tried to reign the girls in, "But, we can't do anything to him. Remember, this is a non-combat scenario. Also, we're here for a reason, so keep it in check."

"Yeah, I know, Sasuke-kun. It's just that..." Sakura trailed off.

"I know." Naruto said, "From the way it was going, he would have probably forced himself onto Naruko."

Hinata and Sakura both shivered at the thought. They knew since their first days at the academy that it was a threat specific to kunoichi. They had been informed that such things have happened before, that in the traditionally male-dominated world of ninjas, that opposing females were often captured for "entertainment" purposes. They had been told, they knew of it, but to see it almost happen. It was enough to make them have second thoughts about their career choice.

"Hey, hey." Naruto tried to get the girls to come back to reality, "Come on, we got a job to do.

"H-hai." Hinata stammered as she was brought back from her thoughts.

"Let's just get this over with." Sakura said.

Team 7 split up and camped outside of Akio's apartment for the rest of the night. The scarred man did not exit his apartment at all. Team 7 departed from the man at 8 A.M. in order to make their 9 A.M. deadline.

* * *

Kiba and the rest of the current Team 8 dragged themselves back in to report the success of their mission. They hadn't exactly had an easy time of it. Several times Tayuya had to cover their presence with genjutsu.

"I wouldn't have had to save our asses so much if you'd have shut that damn mutt up." Tayuya cursed as Team 8 made their way back to the Ninja Ops building.

Akamaru growled at her angrily while Kiba retorted, "Oh, who was the one that got into a fight on the street because she though someone touched her butt?"

"Hey, the old fuck did touch my butt." Tayuya said in her defense, "I can't help that those other people thought I was mugging him..."

Shiroi and Kaen just shook their heads at the exchange. Truthfully, both of them had endangered the operation a few times, but at least Tayuya had been able to save them from being discovered.

"Could you two stop bickering for a moment and focus on the task at hand here. We have to give a full report on the target's activities through the day." Shiroi said.

"Whatever." Tayuya said with a huff.

"Yeah..." Kiba agreed.

* * *

Team 10 had a rather easy time of their assignment. Sai's birds had found the target quickly, and then Ino was easily able to keep tabs on her through using the Mind Transfer jutsu on various people and animals. Chouji and Tsuneni identified the bodyguards and kept tabs on them throughout the day.

"That went pretty well." Chouji said as they closed in on the Ninja Ops building.

"Yes, remarkably easy." Tsuneni commented, "I guess they weren't expecting someone that could jump from body to body."

"Yeah, they never even once thought that the cat following them was strange." Ino said, "I guess I'm pretty good."

"We were just lucky." Sai said.

"Shut up, you." Ino responded.

"You know, now that I really look at you... Did you know you look like a pig?" Sai asked earnestly.

"I'm going to kill you!" Ino shouted as she was restrained by Chouji.

"Come on, we got a report to make." Chouji said as he hauled the crazed banshee into the Ninja Ops building.

* * *

"Well that wasn't as hard as I was expecting." Haku said.

"Yes. Well, the Byakugan does make this kind of thing easier." Neji commented.

"Yosh!" Lee exclaimed, "We will show everyone the power of our youth!"

"Lee..." Tenten sighed. Sometimes the green clad genin was a little too much.

"I wonder who else will make it." Haku asked the group.

"I'm sure my cousin's team will make it." Neji said, "Between her and the Uchiha, they have both the Byakugan and Sharingan. Not to mention that Naruto can be most unpredictable. I'm sure they did fine. The others I'm not so sure of, especially since each have new members."

"I do hope, Ino-chan makes it through." Haku said, "Though, with the right application of her Mind Transfer Jutsu, it should be easy for her."

"I'm sure she did fine, Haku." Tenten reassured him.

"Yes! Her flames of youth shall not be removed so easily from this exam my friend." Lee said, clapping a hand on Haku's back.

"Thanks." Haku answered.

"Well, time to get down to business." Neji told the rest of his team as they approached the building.

* * *

Team 7 walked into the debriefing room. There they saw their proctor sitting at a desk and the target and his bodyguards off to the side. The four genin stood in front Azumamaro. Sakura trembled in anger as she looked at Akio.

"Okay, first off. Akio, Hiromi, Yuji, did any of you see any of these four?" Azumamaro asked the other proctors.

"No, sir." Hiromi and Yuji replied.

"Nope," Akio answered arrogantly, "I doubt these snot-nosed brats even found me."

"Found you, hell." Naruto answered, "If those other two hadn't been there, you'd probably have raped me."

"What the hell are you talking about, brat? I'm not into small boys." Akio shouted indignantly.

"Oh, maybe I should refresh your memory." Naruto said as he made the signs for the Transformation Jutsu. With a poof of smoke, Naruko was standing where Naruto used to be, wearing the same outfit as last night.

"Hello, Akio-kun." Naruko said flirtingly, "I don't think we're going to see much of each other anymore, you're too rough for me."

"You damned brat!" Akio roared.

"You were the tail?" Hiromi asked.

"Yep!" Naruto said happily as he reverted back to his normal form.

Azumamaro burst out laughing, "So not only did you try to force yourself onto a woman, but the woman was the person you were supposed to keep a watch out for. That's priceless, I'll give you credit kid, you got some balls to pull that one off. I never expected anyone to get up close and personal with their target. I'd say you did a hell of a job. I don't think you even need to make a report anymore, you passed."

"Yeah!" Naruto shouted exuberantly, "Told you guys I was a master of disguise!"

Azumamaro laughed along with Naruto, "So it seems kid. Anyway, the next test begins tomorrow at 9 A.M. I suggest you rest up, it's going to be a doozy.

Team 7 bowed and left the briefing room.

"Akio, did you really attack a civilian girl like that?" Azumamaro asked, all pretenses of humor gone.

"I... uh..." Akio didn't have words.

"He did. I saw it with my own eyes." Hiromi chimed in.

"Yeah, it was pretty disgraceful." Yuji added.

"It's not like I actually did anything." Akio said in his defense.

"But you got damn close. If Yuji and I hadn't showed up, you'd have gone through with it." Hiromi said.

"Enough!" Azumamaro commanded, "I've heard enough. Akio, I'm telling your superiors about this one. Don't expect to get off as lightly as last time. You need to learn to control yourself."

"But, she, I mean he, isn't a civilian." Akio protested. "He tricked me!"

"That doesn't matter, you thought he was a civilian girl, that's what matters." Azumamaro countered. "Regardless of the circumstances, I doubt the boy forced you onto him."

"I...." Akio had nothing to say in response.

"Leave." Azumamaro commanded, "I got tons more of these meeting, get out of my sight."

"Hai." Akio said as he bowed and he, Hiromi, and Yuji left.

Azumamaro called in the next team and their assigned Chuunins into the debriefing room. He had a long day ahead.

* * *

The Konoha 16 met up in the lobby of the hotel they were staying in. Gaara's team had showed up as well.

"So how did everyone do?" Obito asked.

"We passed with flying colors!" Naruto shouted.

"Yosh! We let our fires of youth shine brightly!" Lee exclaimed.

"Yeah, We rocked it." Kiba added his own cheer.

"How could we fail?" Ino boasted.

"Well, seems like everyone came out of it okay." Obito said with a laugh. All of the Konoha 16 were congratulating each other with the exception of Tayuya and Sai. Obito didn't know much about the emotionless boy, but he had heard some things about the fiery redhead.

"Why aren't you celebrating with the rest?" Obito asked her.

"I don't belong with them." Tayuya answered, "My only goal now is seeing Orochimaru fall."

"Revenge, huh?" Obito said, "You know there's a guy over there you have a lot in common with."

"Who is that?" Tayuya asked.

"Sasuke, the very boy you tried to spirit away." Obito answered, "His life was dominated by thoughts of revenge once, too. Though I think he's making strides to change that."

"Like he has anything in common with me. He's lived in Konoha with he rest of you goody-two-shoes hippies, while my clan was wiped out and I was practically a slave to Orochimaru." Tayuya answered.

"Obviously, you haven't heard of the Uchiha Massacre." Obito replied, "Sasuke's entire clan was wiped out as well. He watched as his family was cut down by his own brother, my cousin. He shares a lot of experiences with you and he used to have a similar goal as yours. For the past 6 years all he could think about was killing his brother. However, thanks to his friends he's starting to grow past that. You should do the same."

"Never, I will be there when that snake bastard goes down." Tayuya replied.

"I never said stop trying to get your vengeance. Just don't let it consume you. Remember, your a member of Konoha now. Your our comrade, we will be here for you. After you get Orochimaru, you need something else to live for, don't you?" Obito asked.

"I guess. I never really thought about it that way." Tayuya replied, "I guess I could try..."

"Yeah, you never know where you'll find things to help ease the pain of that which is lost." Obito told her.

"Thanks." Tayuya said as she made to go join the others in celebration.

"Don't mention it." Obito replied, "Glad to help."

* * *

The next morning the Konoha 16 reported to the same briefing room that they had been in the following morning for the first test. They were the only squads from Konoha to make it and part of only ten teams to pass. There were three Suna teams that passed, one of which being Gaara's team, and then one team from each of Kusa, Ame, and Taki. In front of them sat a single man. He was well built, standing slightly over six feet tall, and he wore a beanie with a name plate on it that read "Horigome", otherwise he wore similar clothing to the other Suna nins.

"Sup, midgets." The man said after everyone made it in. "I'm the proctor for your second exam, Chikafusa Horigome. If you'll follow me, we'll get started on your exam."

The genin followed Chikafusa out of the Ninja Ops building and outside of the gates of Suna. He led them out into the desert for a little ways to where a small group of Suna ninja awaited.

"Now, I need everyone to sign some waivers. Just in case someone gets hurt, or, you know, killed." Chikafusa said nonchalantly while one of the chuunin passed out the waiver forms. While everyone filled out the forms, Chikafusa continued on with the explanation of the test, "Ninja need to know how to survive in the most inhospitable environments. So for this test your instructions are simple, you have to find me within three days. This will test your abilities to both survive and find a target that you don't know the exact location of. All I will tell you is that I'm somewhere to the southwest of here, in the desert."

"That's rather vague, surely you don't expect us to find you just off of those directions." Shiroi asked.

"Of course not, there's various clues 'hidden' out there in the desert to help you on your way." Chikafusa replied, "These notes can be very helpful if you find them. Also, fighting is allowed in this exercise, so you may attempt to gleam information from your opponents, or just try to take out some of the competition."

"You said we have to find you, but you're standing right in front of us. Surely you don't mean to lose us all in a chase from here." Sasuke said.

"Oh, I was never 'here' to begin with." Chikafusa said with a smile, "Each of your chunin proctors will take you to one of the designated starting zones, so you all don't start in a large group, the test begins in an hour. Later." With that, Chikafusa dissolved into a pile of sand.

"A sand clone..." Neji said, "Depending on how far away he is from here that's very impressive.

"Did you get it?" Tayuya asked Kiba.

"It was faint, but yeah I think it's him." Kiba replied.

Soon, each of the teams were being led away to their respective starting zones. An hour later, each of the teams were released from their starting area, the second exam had begun.

* * *

"How do you think they'll do out there?" Kurenai asked.

"Hard to say." Asuma replied, "None of them are really used to the desert."

"I'm sure they'll be fine, they're tough kids." Obito said.

"They all burn brightly with the flames of youth. They shall be fine." Guy exclaimed.

"Yeah..." Kurenai replied. She didn't really know how to respond to the green clad jonin, "I just hate waiting around, not doing anything."

"I know how you feel, but it's all we can do at this point." Obito replied.

"I know." Kurenai replied.

"Don't worry, they'll be calling us out there soon enough. I'm sure between our teams and the Suna team from the last exam, someone we'll be quick to reach the objective.

* * *

Gaara became one with the desert. This was his home. He could feel every dune, every grain of sand.

"You got anything, Gaara?" Kankuro asked.

"Yes. There's a bunker about 3 miles south by southwest. That's probably the best bet." Gaara replied.

"Way to go, Gaara-kun!" Chiyoko said slapping a hand on his back, "You're so cool."

"Hey, what about me, Chiyoko?" Kankuro asked.

"You play with dolls, Kankuro. That's so lame." Chiyoko teased him.

"They're puppets damn it, not dolls." Kankuro said defensively.

Temari laughed while Chiyoko skipped out ahead of the group, "Come on guys. I'd like to get out of the desert before I get sand in my panties!"

"Girl's got a point." Kankuro said.

"Yes, let's get going. We have people to meet." Gaara said.

"Yeah." Temari agreed as they each strode on behind their hyperactive teammate.

* * *

"Alright the scent heads this way!" Kiba said to his teammates as he pointed out a direction roughly west by southwest.

"You sure?" Tayuya asked.

"As sure as I can be." Kiba replied. "Like I said the scent was faint, so I might get thrown off."

"It's our best lead." Shiroi commented, "We'll keep an eye out for those clues, and make sure we're heading the right way. Who knows, we might run into another team and be able to get some info that way."

"Let's do this thing then." Kaen said fiercely, "This isn't going to be the best place to be for three days. The desert is hot during the day and extremely cold at night. The sooner we get out of here the better."

"Agreed." Shiroi stated.

With Kiba at the point, Team 8 began their trek into the desert.

* * *

Haku was extremely displeased with the current situation.

"What's wrong Haku?" Tenten asked, sensing her teammates disposition.

"I'm useless here." Haku said, "There's not even enough moisture in the air for me to make a single ice needle, much less use any of my better techniques."

"Then you'll just have to rely on us." Neji said, "We are a team, we'll cover for you."

"Yosh, when we work together we shine even brighter with the flames of youth!" Lee shouted.

Tenten spared a glance for her spandex-wearing friend before letting out an exasperated sigh.

"I guess. Just know that if we get into any fights that I'm not going to be as helpful as I usually am. I'm going to be limited to my throwing weapons and the few Wind Jutsu I know." Haku said.

"Don't worry about it." Neji replied, "We're in this one together."

"So do you see anything of use, Neji-kun?" Tenten asked.

Neji shook his head, "Nothing yet."

Team Guy was heading in a general southwestern direction. The current plan was to find one of Chikafusa's clues and continue from there.

"This is going to be a long three days, isn't it?" Tenten asked no one in particular.

"Hai." Neji and Haku answered in unison.

* * *

"So what's our plan?" Chouji asked.

"I could try scouring the area with ink animals again." Sai replied.

"Maybe, but I have an feeling that he's going to be harder to find than that." Tsuneni replied, "I think we should search out one of those clues he was talking about."

"I agree with Tsuneni." Ino chimed in.

"So how do we find these clues?" Chouji asked.

"I don't know." Tsuneni answered truthfully. "The proctor did say that he southwest of the starting point and that he was in the desert. So we should just head southwest. The clues must be hidden along that path."

"I suppose we'll just have to get lucky." Chouji replied.

"It seems that way." Tsuneni replied.

"Whatever we do, we need to get a move on, this weather is drying out my skin." Ino said.

"I do not understand why you try so hard to be pretty." Sai said, "It's obvious that you never will be."

Ino looked at her newest teammate with a pure venom, "You're lucky we need four people, or I would SO kill you right now."

"Come on, we're going to have to work together to get through this, so put your hatreds aside." Tsuneni told them.

"I do not hate her, I'm merely stating an observation." Sai replied as Team 10 plodded along through the desert.

"Be that as it may, try not to antagonize her." Tsuneni answered, "I'd like to get through this as quickly as possible."

"Yeah." Chouji agreed.

"Fine, I will not mention it again." Sai acquiesced.

"Hmph..." Ino stomped out ahead of the team in a huff.

Tsuneni sighed, "This isn't going to be a pleasant trip."

"You could say that again." Chouji said.

* * *

"I HATE THIS DAMN DESERT!" Naruto screamed.

"Shut up, idiot." Sasuke said harshly.

"Everything looks the same, I can't tell where the hell we're going." Naruto continued on his tirade.

"Screaming about it won't help, baka." Sakura admonished.

"This sucks..." Naruto said.

"Naruto-kun, it's just one more step on the path right?" Hinata said.

"Yeah, but damn it, this sucks so bad." Naruto continued complaining.

"I know, but complaining isn't going to help." Hinata replied.

"I guess..." Naruto sighed.

"Come on, idiot, this can't be any worse than the Forest of Death. At least there aren't giant snakes and stuff trying to eat us." Sasuke said.

"Yeah." Naruto agreed.

"We've been out here for a couple hours now, and we haven't seen hide nor hair of anything or anyone. Any idea how were going to find that guy?" Sakura asked.

"Not really." Sasuke replied, "Gotta hope we find one of those clues."

Suddenly the earth below Team 7 began to shake.

"What.... the.... hell?" Naruto manage to get out as he stayed upright.

"Byakugan!" Hinata said as she activated her Kekkei Genkai and took a quick look under the ground, "By the gods!"

"What is it, Hinata?" Sakura asked.

"It's a giant worm...." Hinata said. As soon as she said that a giant worm exploded up out of the ground. It looked like a giant earthworm, however every member on Team 7 could make out the white piece of paper on the things head that had "CLUE" written on it.

"You've got to be joking." Sasuke said incredulously.

"That's not hiding the damn thing, that's trying to get us to commit suicide!" Naruto shouted.

"Wow..." Sakura said in amazement of the worm's sheer size. laying on the ground it was easily as tall as a two story building and it stretched out to be around 75 feet long.

Hinata couldn't say anything.

"Well, I guess we're going hunting then." Sasuke said.

"Looks like it." Naruto replied with a grin.

Sakura and Hinata nodded, even though they had no idea how they were going to deal with such a massive creature.

"Let's do this thing." Naruto said as he took of into action, the rest of Team 7 close on his heels.

* * *

A/N

Shadowfaux: I just have some things to say in response to your review. First, I said Jiraiya wanted to take Naruto out on a extended training trip, but never did I say that Jiraiya will be leaving Konoha for years without Naruto. It's not going to take him that long to meet his contacts. He'll be gone for a month maybe two at a time. So Naruto will still be getting in some training with Jiraiya. I'm sorry if I made it seem that Jiraiya would be gone for an extended period of time even without Naruto. That was not what I had intended.

Also, while, yes, they have lived for the last 12-13 years apart. They weren't dating at the time. That has to account for something in the decision. It's not like you can just drop love like that. If I was faced with the same choice I can honestly say I don't know what decision I would reach. Correspondence/phone calls or whatever is not a good replacement for face to face contact. Honestly ask yourself, if you had someone you truly loved, could you leave them for two to three years for any reason?

I did not take this decision lightly, I truly thought about what I thought Naruto would do in this situation. I guess that we have differing views on the way Naruto would deal with such a decision. If I had felt that Naruto would have left with Jiraiya, then that's what I would've done, personal preference be damned. I understand that I cannot force the characters to go one way or the other. I try to let them come to me, so to speak. Maybe it's something I still need to work with, but I stand by my decision on this point.

Also, I honestly don't who could teach Naruto more, Jiraiya or Obito at this point. Honestly, Jiraiya hasn't shown to much of a repertoire of skills outside of summons and the Rasengan. Obito, meanwhile, has the Sharingan and is a virtual walking encyclopedia of jutsu. While Naruto doesn't know this really, I don't think it's that safe of an assumption that Jiraiya is a better teacher for Naruto than Obito. While it's most likely the case, I think it's closer than you make it out to be.

Thanks for your review, it's appreciated. I hope to see you around again.

As for everyone else, thanks for the appreciation and support. However, I'm slightly disappointed in the drop off from chapter 15 to 16. I had half the hits the day 16 released as compared to 15, and not even half as many reviews. Maybe 16 just wasn't that good...

Anyway, please read and review, that's all I want for Christmas, lol.

I hope you enjoyed Chapter 17, and I wish you all a very merry Christmas.


	18. Chapter 18 Into the Desert Sands

Four Man Squads

Chapter 18 - Into the Desert Sands

"Damn it." Naruto cursed as he continued chasing the worm. They had been chasing the thing for a while now, and Naruto was pretty sure they weren't going southwest anymore. The giant worm seemingly refused to acknowledge Team 7's presence. They had thrown kunai and shuriken, Sasuke had pelted it with fireballs, Hinata had shot chakra enhanced arrows at it, and Sakura even tried to put it in a genjutsu, but nothing worked. They had been able to catch up and try to detach the note from the worms head, but it was sealed on tightly. Hinata had deduced that the seals strength was directly tied to the beasts chakra network somehow since she could see that the seal was tied into the worm's network. That meant they had to kill the thing, or bring it close to death at least, to get the note off of it.

"Looks like we'll have to pull out the big guns, Naruto." Sasuke shouted as he ran through familiar hand signs.

Naruto nodded and made a Shadow Clone. He held his hand out to the clone and let it do it's work.

"Chidori!" Sasuke shouted as the electricity cackled to life on his palm to the song of a thousand chirping birds.

"Rasengan!" Naruto announced as the spinning sphere of chakra gathered on his palm. The clone however, did not dispel, and ran over to Hinata.

"Hinata-hime, we might need your help." The clone said as it got close.

"I've already hit it with my most destructive attack with those arrows." Hinata said, "The tenketsu points on the worm are very well protected and I doubt that I or even Neji could close them."

"That's not what I have in mind." the clone said. "How confident are you in you're chakra control."

"It's my best skill. Why?" Hinata asked.

"Hold out your hand, and try to make a Rasengan. I'll add the extra power you need, just focus on controlling it. Just try to keep it in a sphere and don't let it disperse. That's the idea of the third stage, which you haven't done yet. I don't think we're going to have much choice in how to stop this thing." Naruto explained.

"Okay, I'll try." Hinata answered as she held out her hand and began to form the stage one form of the Rasengan. As she did so, the clone began attacking the air around her palm, adding extra spin and the force of his own chakra.

Hinata looked up to see Sasuke and Naruto both plunge their attacks into the giant worm. Sasuke's arm plunged shoulder deep into the beast's side. Naruto's Rasengan scoured the flesh from his area of impact on the worms back.

"Hinata!" The clone called out.

Hinata brought herself back to the task at hand and looked at the sphere. It was starting to dissipate while the clone kept pumping chakra into it. She refocused on trying to keep the form with her chakra while letting Naruto's fuel the power of the technique. She struggled for a few moments until she thought she had the basic shape down. It was almost spherical. Her control over it wasn't perfect; she could see little bits flare out here and there.

"It's close enough." the clone said, "Just hurry." With its part done, the clone vanished in a cloud of smoke.

Hinata nodded and began her charge at the worm which was loosening a roar as it finally acknowledged its annoyances. The worm had finally stopped and she took the chance to run up the things "back" and go after it's head. She passed up Naruto who looked on as she rushed onwards.

"Go! Hinata!" Naruto shouted as Hinata finished her charge.

"Rasengan!" Hinata shouted as she plunged her attack into the area just under the seal holding the clue. Her attack scoured the thing's flesh just as Naruto's had, but she could tell that it wasn't anywhere near as powerful.

The worm roared in irritation before lashing out at the pests attacking it. It violently threw Naruto and Hinata from its back and nearly crushed Sasuke who was just barely able to extract his arm and move out of the way.

"We can't do that to many more times, and that thing looks like it's barely fazed." Sasuke said as Team 7 regrouped, "That and it looks like we finally got his attention, for better or worse."

The rest of the team looked up to see the giant worm raised up off the ground. If it weren't for the fact they had to try and beat this thing, they would have been thoroughly impressed. Right now, it just scared them shitless. Suddenly, the worm pitched forward in an attempt to crush them. Sasuke and Naruto ducked off to the left while the girls jumped clear in the opposite direction.

"They can never make this easy..." Naruto complained as he and Sasuke regrouped. They watched as the worm flung his head violently, spraying a viscous green substance at Hinata and Sakura. Luckily for Sakura, it missed her. However, Hinata was covered in a fair amount of it. Most of her right side was covered. Immediately recognizing what it was, Hinata immediately began stripping off the clothing covered in the substance, which meant her jacket and her pants, as well as her kunai holster that she wore on her leg. She was left wearing the black, short-sleeve shirt she usually wore when she trained and a pair of black compression shorts similar to Sakura's.

"Watch out for the spit, it's acid!" Hinata called out before the pain hit her. She screamed as she looked at her right arm. She hadn't stripped the jacket off fast enough and now the acid was eating at her arm. Sakura was quick on the pickup and rushed to her side and immediately began repairing the damage the acid was doing while trying to neutralize the agent.

"Damn. Sasuke, we're going to have to do something drastic here." Naruto said.

"What do you have in mind?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto whispered his plan into his friends ear.

"That's crazy. We have no idea what will happen when that happens. It could kill both of us along with the worm." Sasuke said.

"You got any better ideas? We pissed the thing off already, so if we don't kill it, it's going to kill us." Naruto retorted.

Sasuke thought for a moment, but Naruto was right. The worm would kill them now, and this gambit was the only thing they had that might be powerful enough to stop it, "Alright, let's do it."

"Sakura!" Naruto shouted, "You and Hinata get clear! Sasuke and I have a plan, but it's dangerous and you don't want to be in the middle of it when it happens."

"Alright, Naruto!" Sakura called back as she helped Hinata move clear of the battlefield.

Naruto and Sasuke moved to opposing sides of the worm, dividing it's attention. They were simply buying time until the girls could get out of the way. Pelting the thing with more kunai and shuriken. Sasuke even used the Yari Daikage to irritate the hole he had made with Chidori, however he didn't hold on to the skill for long as he needed most of his chakra for this last attack.

"Ready, Sasuke?" Naruto called out as he used his shadow clones to dodge an acid spray while in mid air.

"Yeah, it's now or never." Sasuke replied as he continued throwing a barrage of kunai.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he used a Shadow Clone's help to make the sphere.

"Chidori!" Sasuke yelled as he made the lightning jutsu for the second time.

Naruto and Sasuke rushed at the worm from opposing sides.

"What are they doing?" Sakura asked from her and Hinata's vantage point atop a nearby sand dune, "They know that won't deal enough damage."

Hinata however saw what was really happening, they weren't aiming for the worm, they were aiming at each other. "Sakura, they aren't attacking the worm, they're aiming for each other."

"WHAT?" Sakura shouted in surprise.

Sasuke and Naruto were now each making their way up the worms back, ignoring it's attempts to dislodge them. The met at the middle at high speed, and Chidori met Rasengan. Using a slight turn and the force of the impact of jutsus, Sasuke and Naruto directed their attack at the worm. Soon after meeting the combined jutsu's lit the area up in a blinding white light. A scream of agony emerged from the worm.

Hinata watched everything, seemingly in slow motion. The Chidori and Rasengan impacted and both volatile jutsus practically exploded from the contact. The pure white sphere of destruction expanded rapidly and literally disintegrated half of the worm instantly. She watched on in horror as the force of the explosion threw both Sasuke and Naruto away from the point of impact. Sasuke landed solidly into a sand dune while Naruto ended up skipping across the desert like a flat rock tossed along the surface of a lake. However, the threat was over, the worm was dead.

"Sasuke!" Sakura shouted as she rushed off to aid the Uchiha.

"Naruto!" Hinata yelled as she went to help her love.

Sakura found Sasuke buried a good ten feet into a sand dune.

"Sasuke?" Sakura shouted into the hole, "Sasuke-kun!"

"Yeah..." Sasuke called out weakly.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked worriedly.

"I'm alright, just not in the best of shape. I can't move, you're going to have to get me out of here." Sasuke replied.

"Okay." Sakura said as she set to work digging Sasuke out of the hole.

Hinata found Naruto a few hundred yards away from the battle. She skidded to a stop and kneeled down to help him. From what she could tell he was suffering from numerous broken bones.

"Naruto-kun, can you hear me?" Hinata asked the seemingly unconscious Naruto.

"Yeah..." Naruto replied, "That was a hell of a ride, hime. Gotta do it again sometime." Naruto chuckled at his own joke.

"This isn't the time to joke, Naruto-kun. You're hurt severely." Hinata reprimanded.

"This is nuthin'." Naruto answered, "The fox's chakra is already healing some of the damage. I just need some help in setting some of my bones, and I'll be alright by morning, promise."

Hinata sighed, "Well you aren't going to be moving for a while. I'll go get Sakura and Sasuke. Then, we'll set up camp."

Hinata did as she said and went over to where Sasuke had landed. She stopped and retrieved the clue from the worm's now disembodied head.

"Sakura, how's Sasuke?" Hinata asked as she got near. Sakura was pulling Sasuke out of the hole in the sand.

"Suffering from chakra depletion, and he has some bruises and cuts, but nothing serious, luckily." Sakura replied. "How's Naruto?"

"About a fourth of the bones in his body are broken. However, he's healing with the aid of Kyuubi. He said he needs someone to help set some of the bones and he'll be alright by morning." Hinata replied, "We're going to have to set up camp around him, because he's not going to be moving anytime soon."

"Alright. Do you need help, Sasuke?" Sakura asked.

"Nah, I can walk." Sasuke replied, "Thanks, Sakura-chan."

"Don't mention it, Sasuke-kun." Sakura replied happily.

Team 7 made camp around Naruto's recuperating body. Sakura set all of his bones so they would heal properly. They ate some of the smaller creatures they could catch in the desert, snakes mostly, and made their water traps before they bedded down for the night, the clue temporarily forgotten while the mended their wounds and rested.

* * *

Chikafusa was rummaging around in the base's kitchen area. Desperately trying to find his favorite snack.

"Where in the hell are the Funyuns?" Chikafusa asked no one as he rummaged through the cabinets.

"Sir?" A chuunin asked.

"The Funyuns, man! Where are the Funyuns?" Chikafusa shouted at the chuunin.

"Um... we don't have any sir. They're not on the kitchen stocking list, and..." The chuunin answered.

"Oh hell no! You better go get me some Funyuns right now, before I tear this place apart." Chikafusa commanded.

"Yes sir." The chuunin said before bolting out of the room.

"What in the world is so important about Funyuns?" Azumamaro said from his vantage point in the corner of the kitchen. He was thoroughly amused by his fellow Tokubetsu Jonin's antics.

"Let me tell you a story, Azumamaro." Chikafusa replied, "There's was this great god named Zeus. Zeus said, 'Let there be Funyuns!'. However, one man said, 'I don't like Funyuns'. Zeus's reply was simply, 'LIGHTNING BOLT, BITCH!'. To make the long story short, Funyuns, my dear friend, are the food of the gods."

Azumamaro just simply stared at Chikafusa, "... You're very odd, you know that?"

Chikafusa didn't respond to Azumamaro's question as he felt the disappearance of one of his "clue guardians."

"Impressive." Chikafusa said.

"What are you talking about now?" Azumamaro asked, not quite sure he wanted to know.

"One of the teams took down my Giant Sand Worm. It was guarding the best clue." Chikafusa replied.

"Oh.... Wait a minute! You attached a clue to a Giant Sand Worm?" Azumamaro asked incredulously.

"Yeah, what of it?" Chikafusa replied.

"You're fucking insane, that's what." Azumamaro replied, "You're going to kill those kids."

"That's what the release papers were for." Chikafusa said with a laugh.

"Absolutely bat shit crazy." Azumamaro muttered under his breath.

A few moments later the chuunin sent to recover some Funyuns came back with two family size bags of Funyuns. Chikafusa saw this, and his eyes widened in glee.

"Holy Shit! Zeus will spare thee today!" Chikafusa said as he immediately grabbed the two bags from the chuunin, "Good Work 54, looks like I won't have to Raiton your ass. Keep the change." Chikafusa then retreated to a table and happily began munching on his snacks.

"Did he just call me a random number?" The chuunin asked.

"Yep." Azumamaro replied.

"Does he realize I paid for those?" The chuunin asked again

"Nope." Azumamaro answered

"Then what about..." The chuunin started.

"Get back to work." Azumamaro commanded.

"Hai." The chuunin said dejectedly.

* * *

Kiba and the rest of Team 8 were slowly making their way to what they hoped was their proctor's current location.

"You sure about this?" Tayuya asked.

"Yes, for the thousandth time." Kiba said irritably, "I've told you the scent is faint, but I'm sure he came this way. I just have to make sure I don't lose it."

Shiroi and Kaen where just hanging back, not wanting to get in the argument. The two of them had been doing this pretty much since the beginning of the second exam.

Suddenly, Akamaru started yipping excitedly.

"Yeah, I can smell it too, boy." Kiba replied.

"What is it?" Shiroi asked.

"There's a second scent not to far from this one." Kiba said, "It's stronger and heads in a similar direction. Also, I smell... Funyuns."

"Funyuns?" Kaen asked.

"Funyuns." Kiba replied.

"I think someone's had a little too much sun." Tayuya said with a laugh.

"Whatever, both scents lead the same way, and now that I have a stronger scent we can pick up the pace." Kiba said as he took off, the rest of Team 8 following behind.

* * *

Sai bent down and picked the note up off the carcass of the dead scorpion. The beast was impressive, easily five or six times the size of any scorpion Tsuneni had ever heard of.

"That has got to be the biggest spider I've ever seen." Ino said in wonder.

"Yes it is quite large." Sai commented.

"Anyway, what about the clue?" Chouji asked.

"It's a piece of map." Sai said.

"A piece of map?" Tsuneni asked, "We're in the middle of a desert, there's no landmarks to base anything off of."

"It has a point marked." Sai said. "There's also some points around it that can be used as land marks if we can find them. Shall I use the Chouju Giga?"

"Yes, that would probably be the wisest course of action." Tsuneni answered.

Sai set to work creating an army of birds to scout out the surrounding area.

* * *

"Stop!" Neji commanded. The rest of Team Guy did as instructed. "The area is rigged with traps. I'll get it."

Team Guy had found a clue seemingly just laying in the middle of the valley between two sand dunes. Lee had immediately rushed to get the scroll before Neji stopped him.

Neji deftly navigated the area, he could see all the traps easily, some where buried beneath the ground and others had chakra sensors, those were tricky. However, he was able to navigate the area with little trouble. He then came to the clue, which was resting on a pressure plate. This was going to be tricky, since this trap was wired to all of the other ones. Neji quickly picked up the scroll and began dodging incoming projectiles. The proctor definitely wasn't pulling any punches as most of the traps could kill a man instantly.

Soon Neji found too many projectiles coming at him to dodge them all.

"Kaiten!" Neji shouted as he began his spin to deflect the incoming weapons. After a few moments the chaos died down and Neji was surrounded by a armory's worth of weapons.

"Well, that was easy enough." Neji said as he returned to the group.

"Neji-kun..." Tenten said with a hint of anger in her voice.

"Sorry if I worried you, Tenten." Neji reassured her, "I had it all under control, don't worry."

"Anyway, the clue?" Haku asked.

Neji opened the scroll, "One mile south, there is an oasis, you'll find another clue there."

"Wonderful!" Lee shouted, "Let us make haste."

"An oasis?" Haku asked, "That means water." Haku dug around in his pack for a few moments, "Yes, I brought some blank scrolls."

Neji looked at his teammates, "Shall we continue?" Everyone nodded and Team 10 made their way to this oasis.

* * *

Night was setting in, and Team 7 had still yet to look at the clue that they had fought so hard to earn. Hinata and Sakura had gotten a fire started and were relaxing as much as they could while Sasuke and Naruto recuperated.

Sakura eyed the note that Hinata had laid down, "I guess we should read the thing already."

"Yes, everything else is taken care of." Hinata answered as she grabbed the clue, she opened the note up to read a few simple lines.

_When the night meets day_

_The Stars of the Desert will light the way._

"What do you suppose this means?" Hinata asked as she passed the note to Sakura.

"Well, 'night meets day' is obviously dawn, but the 'Stars of the Desert' I don't know about. The stars will be disappearing at that point, so it can't mean the stars in the sky. I guess we'll have to wait until dawn to find out..." Sakura said.

"Seems so. Anyway, you want first watch or should I do it?" Hinata asked.

"I'll take it." Sakura replied.

"Alright, Good night, Sakura." Hinata said as she snuggled up under a blanket near the fire.

"Yeah, see you in four hours." Sakura answered as she settled in for the first watch.

* * *

Sakura's watch had came and went uneventfully and she had woken Hinata up four hours later. Hinata's watch also passed without any major happenings. Dawn was approaching, and she turn her eyes to the desert. Soon the sun began to rise, and Hinata was blown away.

"Sakura!" Hinata shouted, "Sakura, wake up!"

"What is it?" Sakura asked groggily as she began to sit up.

"The desert! Look!" Hinata said as she pointed out to the desert.

Sakura looked out into the desert to see what would accurately be described as the "Stars of the Desert." There was essentially a path made of shimmering dots on the desert sand. Sakura didn't understand what could be causing the phenomena, but this was obviously the path the clue said to take.

"We need to wake Sasuke and Naruto. We don't know how long we have to follow this path." Sakura said.

"Hai." Hinata agreed and they immediately set to breaking down camp and waking the boys. Sasuke and Naruto still felt pretty rough, but they were good enough to travel.

Thirty minutes after seeing the path light up, Team 7 was on the trail, hoping they could make their way to where they were supposed to be before the stars died.

"How long do you think we'll have to follow this thing for?" Naruto asked.

"No telling, we just have to go as fast as possible." Sasuke replied.

Naruto sighed, "Let's just get this done."

Team 7 ran at top speed for an hour. Finally they saw something interesting. At a distance it could be confused for a rock, but as they had gotten closer they could tell that the formation was man made, a bunker of some sort.

"I bet that's the target." Naruto said.

"Yeah, seems likely." Sasuke replied.

"Shall we go then?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah." Sasuke replied, "Besides, getting out of the sun will be good. Even if this isn't our target."

"I agree." Sakura said, "This desert is brutal."

Team 7 made their way to the building, hoping to find an entrance somewhere.

* * *

Team Guy had spent the night at the oasis. It was late when they had arrived and they decided to wait to search for the next clue in the morning.

Now, Lee and Tenten were breaking down their camp while Neji was searching for the next clue and Haku had situated himself at the edge of the small lake that fueled the oasis. Haku was busy writing something down onto a blank scroll he had brought with him.

"Haku!" Tenten called out, "What are you doing?"

"Gathering materials." Haku replied, not taking his eyes off his work.

Tenten walked over to him and looked at what he was working on. On his scroll she saw a very complex series of seals that looked similar to the seals she used on her weapon scrolls. "What is that?"

"Watch." Haku said as he rand through a few hands signs, "Fuka Mizu!"

Tenten did watch as the seal began pulling water from the lake and into the scroll. It was an impressive sight. The water rose from the surface of the lake in a spout and traveled through the air into the scroll.

"Where did you learn that skill?" Tenten asked.

"From my former teacher, Zabuza-sama." Haku replied, fondly remembering his former master, "It's a skill taught to most everyone from Kirigakure since most of them use water based jutsu and one might not find water when needed. He taught it to me when he took me away from that place."

Tenten nodded. She knew that Haku's past was a soft spot for the effeminate genin, and he didn't talk about it unless he wanted to. She figured that he must have had a pretty miserable childhood. All she really knew was that he was an orphan from Kirigakure and was rescued by a man named Zabuza Momochi, one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Other than that, Haku didn't talk much about himself or how he had come to be a Konoha shinobi.

Soon after Haku's display of waterworks was over, Neji came back to the group.

"I've searched all around, and there's nothing here." Neji said as he went to the edge of the lake.

"Maybe someone else stumbled across it." Haku offered as he tucked his water scroll away.

"Possible..." Neji replied.

"Did you check everywhere, Neji-kun?" Tenten asked.

"Yes, I checked everywhere in a 250 yard radius." Neji replied.

"It would be very unyouthful for the proctor to create a false clue." Lee stated.

"Yes, I doubt the proctor added false clues to real ones." Haku said. "Either we're missing something or someone else got the clue."

Neji activated his dojutsu one more time. "I'll try a second sweep to see if there is anything I might have missed." Neji began to scan the lake and the immediate area around it. Just like the first time, nothing looked out of place. However, something caught Neji's eye at the bottom of the lake. It was well camouflaged with the lake bed.

"Found something." Neji informed his teammates, "Bottom of the lake. It's disguised to blend in with the lake bed."

"On it!" Lee shouted with exuberance before diving into the lake.

"Lee! Wait!" Tenten shouted, but the spandex-wearing genin did not hear her, "What if there are traps?"

"Don't worry, Tenten." Neji assured her, "I see no evidence of traps around the clue."

A few moments later Lee resurface, clue in hand. He swam back to the rest of the team.

"Got it!" Lee said as he began to open the package holding clue. He pulled it out and immediately read the note, "Two miles to the west there's a bunker that looks like a rock, your target is there."

"Alright, sounds like we're in business." Tenten said.

"Yes, we are." Neji replied, "With any luck, we can get out of this desert by lunch."

With everything packed up and ready to go, Team Guy headed off to the west.

* * *

Team 10's progress was slow going. Sai's birds had found one of the landmarks on the map and the team was making their way over to it. However, it seemed that it was going to be a long trip. They had stopped for the night and started out early the next day. While getting to the landmark would be the safest route, it seemed that it would take them miles out of the way. However, Sai and Tsuneni were sure that they could make the trip in the next two days, even with the detour.

"If we know where the landmark is, why can't we just adjust ourselves to get to the target directly?" Ino complained, "I want to get out of this damn desert."

"I've told you before, Ino." Tsuneni replied, "It's safer if we head to the landmark first, so we know that we are truly headed in the right direction. There's no way we can tell our true location on the map from where we are. While we could possibly manage to find the target directly, there's a good chance that we could miss the target completely. This way may be longer, but it is safer. I'd rather be sure that I make the next round, than trying to escape the desert."

"Yeah, yeah." Ino replied in a bored tone.

"Just stick with it, Ino. It'll be over before you know it. Besides, gotta make sure you get back to Haku, right?" Chouji prodded.

"Yeah, I bet his team is there already. He's probably worried sick about me..." Ino said, her daydreams taking over.

"She's very.... odd." Sai said as the team trudged along.

"You don't know the half of it." Chouji replied.

* * *

Team 7 entered the building with ease. It seems they weren't worried about hiding the entrance, as it was easily found on the opposite side of the building from the star path.

"I'm glad that's over." Naruto said as he let the coolness of the building wash over him.

"You can say that again." Sakura said as she did the same.

"I'm glad that's over." Naruto joked. He hid behind Hinata when Sakura balled her fist and made like she was going to hit him. One look at Hinata, however, changed that plan.

"Congratulations." Obito called out as he strode down the hallway in front of them.

"Thanks, Obito-sensei." Naruto replied.

"You're the second team to make it in. I had heard Gaara's team made it, and I figured you guys wouldn't be too far behind." Obito said.

"Heh, should have figured he'd be first. The desert is his territory." Sasuke said.

"Yeah, We're definitely at a disadvantage here." Naruto replied.

"Well, you got a day of rest ahead of you. From the looks of it, there will probably be another preliminary round, so you need to get ready for that." Obito said.

"Hai." Everyone answered.

"Alright there's rooms waiting on you guys, I'm sure you'd like to wash yourselves of the desert sands." Obito said.

"Yes. Thank you, sensei." Sakura said. Everyone began making their way to the dorms.

"Oh, Hinata!" Obito called out, "What happened to your clothes?"

Hinata blushed furiously at the comment, "I-I... umm.... T-they were destroyed."

"How?" Obito asked.

"A-acid." Hinata replied still blushing.

"From what?" Obito continued with the questions.

"A giant sand worm!" Naruto jumped in, "You should have seen it! It was massive." Naruto then spread his arms out as wide as they would go, "It was this big!"

"A giant sand worm..." Obito mused, "Impressive that you managed to bring it down, I hear those things can be quite nasty. I'll bring you guys a change of clothes. I assume you brought some extra changes."

"Yes, sensei. Arigato." Hinata said with a bow.

"No problems. I'll be back in a bit, you guys just relax." Obito said as he disappeared.

"Hey, 54!" A voice shouted out from the complex, "Where are my Moon Pies?"

"Was that the proctor?" Naruto asked.

"I believe so." Sasuke replied.

"Who's 54?" Sakura questioned.

Sasuke simply shrugged. Soon, a bedraggled Suna ninja ran past them, Chikafusa hot on his heels, "And get some more Funyuns while you're out there!"

"Um... sir?" Hinata asked tentatively.

"Oh, it's you guys." Chikafusa said as he looked at the genins in front of him, "Are you the ones that took out the worm?"

"Yeah, that was us." Naruto replied happily.

"Oh, good job." Chikafusa stated, "That was a tough one I bet. Come, you have to tell me how you managed it. I'll treat you to some Funyuns and Moon Pies when 54 gets back."

Chikafusa then began moving Team 7 back towards the kitchens, intent on grilling them for every detail of the fight.

* * *

"So you plunged two high-powered jutsu into one another and let the backlash kill the creature and almost yourselves?" Azumamaro asked the genin squad.

"Yeah, that's the gist of it." Sasuke replied.

"That's awesome!" Chikafusa exclaimed as he munched down on a Moon Pie, "I wish I could have been there to see that."

"You kids are absolutely nuts." Azumamaro said, "That was highly dangerous. I'm amazed you came out of it alive."

"Yeah, I guess we're lucky." Naruto replied.

"These kids are gonna do good, Azumamaro." Chikafusa said, "To take down a giant sand worm at that age is just incredible. Gaara's probably the only other one that could manage it."

"Yeah, you're full of surprises, kid." Azumamaro complimented.

"Azumamaro-san, what happened to that Akio creep." Sakura asked.

"Akio is being taken care of, Sakura." Azumamaro replied, "He's getting what's coming to him. I informed the higher-ups of the situation. As of now, he's been relieved of active duty and further punishment is pending."

"I hope that bastard gets what's coming to him." Sakura said in anger.

"Calm down. He's being taken care of." Azumamaro tried to calm the girl, "Besides you have more important things to worry about."

"He's right, Sakura." Hinata agreed, "We have more to worry about than that guy."

"Yeah, I guess." Sakura replied.

"Anyway, you guys probably want to head to your rooms right?" Azumamaro asked.

"Yes, please." Hinata answered.

"Yeah, follow me, I'll show you to the dorms." Azumamaro offered.

"I'll come with!" Chikafusa said.

"No." Azumamaro responded, "I've had enough of your craziness for one day, Chikafusa. You wait for the others who will be showing up."

"You're no fun..." Chikafusa whined.

"Oh, act your age, you damn baby." Azumamaro chided him, "Come on, I'll show you to the rooms."

Team 7 entered their rooms and immediately began washing away the grime from the last couple of days. Hinata was taking a nice long warm bath. She had sand in places she didn't even know she had. After soaking for a while, a knock rang out from the door in her room.

"Come in!" Hinata called out through her small bathroom's door.

"I brought your change of clothes, Hinata." Obito said from the main dorm, "There's something I wish to discuss with the rest of the team, so meet me out in the hall when you are done."

"Hai, sensei." Hinata replied while she continued to soak. After he left, she took a moment to register the sense of déjà vu she was feeling. It felt the same as the last chuunin exam. Her soaking in the tub, with a team meeting on the horizon before the preliminary rounds started. She just hoped that his time around ended better than the last.

Hinata finished up her bath and dried her self off. She then put on her fresh set of clothes and exited her room to join the rest of the team for the meeting with Obito.

* * *

Naruto, Sasuke, and Obito patiently waited for the girls to show up. When Sakura and Hinata emerged from their rooms, Obito got straight to business.

"Alright, so you all know about the possibility of a preliminary round, right?" Obito asked. All the genin nodded, "Well there's another rule that hasn't been used in the history of the chuunin exams. This rule states that if over three-fourths of the genin that made it to the final round made it to the preliminaries in the previous exam and a preliminary round is called for, then that preliminary round may be skipped, at the discretion of the proctors. If this rule is enforced, then everyone makes it to the finals."

"So, there's a chance that we will be skipping the preliminaries, and we will all be getting a chance a chuunin." Sasuke summed it up.

"Yes. Three teams have made it so far. Gaara and his team, you guys, and I heard Team 8 showed up just a short while ago. I'm certain that Team Guy and Team 10 will make it. If it goes as I think it will, there will be twenty people advancing, which is enough to call for a preliminary round." Obito said.

"What are the chances of the preliminaries being skipped?" Sakura asked.

"I don't know, it just depends on the proctors." Obito said.

"You mean that crazy guy is going to choose whether or not we're going to have a preliminary?" Naruto exclaimed indignantly, "No way!"

"So, you've met the proctors." Obito deduced, "I admit he's an odd one, but he's not any worse than Guy."

"Yeah, but Guy-sensei doesn't have any control over this exam!" Naruto shouted.

"Good point." Obito conceded, "Oh well, you'll just have to live with whatever happens. If they do decide to skip the prelims, then everything's good. If not, then you all just have to win."

"Easier said than done." Sakura said, not too fondly remembering that she was the only member of the team not to make the final round of the last chuunin exam.

"I'm sure you'll better this time, Sakura." Hinata encouraged her, "We're all stronger than we were last time."

"Anyway, there will be a vote before the round is to start, the head proctor of each stage will have a vote, and if the majority of the proctors agree, then the preliminaries will be skipped. If passed, we'll wait a month and the finals will proceed as normal." Obito finished his explanation.

"Either way it falls, it doesn't really change things." Sasuke replied, "The plan is to keep winning and to keep showing off your skills."

"When you boil it all down, yes. It doesn't change much for you guys." Obito admitted, "I just thought you would like to know what might happen tomorrow."

"Thanks, sensei." Hinata replied graciously.

"No problem, just enjoy the free time." Obito said, "I'll see you guys around."

The four of them watched their instructor walk off. They each turned to each other after Obito disappeared from view.

"Lunch?" Naruto offered.

"Sounds good." Sasuke replied.

With that, Team 7 made their way back to the kitchen to get some dinner. Each of them hoping not to run into their crazy proctor again.

* * *

The day came and passed. Team Guy showed up later that afternoon, meaning the only Konoha team yet to show up was Team 10. All of the qualified contestants where enjoying a meal together.

"...so Sasuke and I slammed together a Chidori and a Rasengan. There was this huge explosion and then we both got launched away. Oh man, it was a hell of a thing. Hinata and Sakura told me we demolished that worm." Naruto recounted the battle with the giant worm.

"You mean the proctor attached a clue to a giant worm's head?" Kiba asked.

"Sounds like Chikafusa." Temari commented, "He's always been a little off."

"That's just crazy." Kiba said.

"It was." Sasuke answered.

"A much more impressive story than the one of our trip." Haku stated simply.

"Yeah, you guys know me." Naruto said, "I never do things the subtle way."

"This is true." Neji answered.

Everyone enjoyed their meals, even though it wasn't high quality stuff, they knew it was better than what they would have had to scrounge up out of the desert. However, Haku couldn't keep his mind from wandering.

"What's wrong, Haku?" Tenten asked her teammate.

"I'm just worried about Ino-chan." Haku replied, "I hope she's safe."

"Don't worry man." Shiroi said as he had overheard the conversation, "She's with Chouji, he's crazy strong. Not to mention Tsuneni, I can tell you from personal experience she hits pretty hard. I'm sure she's fine."

"Yeah!" Chiyoko added her two cents, "Nothing bad will happen to her while she's with my Chouji-kun!"

"Your Chouji-kun?" Kankuro asked, "How'd you find a guy that's interested in you, Chiyoko?"

"Shut up, Kankuro." Chiyoko replied, "Go play with your dollies somewhere and leave the adults alone."

"You little brat..." Kankuro said angrily.

"Oh, come now children, is that any way to behave?" A new voice cut into the conversation. Everyone looked up to see Chikafusa hovering over them. He was holding a bag of Funyuns.

"Uncle Chikafusa!" Chiyoko yelled as she ran to hug the man, "I haven't seen you since we got here. Where you been?"

"Oh, here and there." Chikafusa replied, "How's my favorite genin doing?"

"I'm just dandy, thanks." Chiyoko replied happily.

"That's good." Chikafusa replied, "There's a bunch of strong guys here, I can tell. You sure you're going to be alright, Chi?"

"Of course. You know I'm the best." Chiyoko said proudly.

"So you've told me. So where's this Chouji-kun of yours, I'd like to meet him." Chikafusa said, "I must find out if he likes Funyuns. A man that does not like Funyuns is not fit to be dating my niece."

"Uncle!" Chiyoko shouted, "You will not do anything to embarrass me!"

"You do a good job of that on your own." Chikafusa replied.

"You're mean..." Chiyoko replied in a huff.

"Oh, you love me anyway though." Chikafusa replied as he tussled the girl's hair, "So, you all are friends apparently."

"Yeah." Naruto replied, "What of it?"

"Nothing much." Chikafusa replied with a smile, "It's just that fights between friends are much more entertaining than fights between strangers. Any of you romantically involved?"

All of the respective couples spared a look at each other. Even Kiba and Tayuya spared a look at the other, even though neither acknowledged it as such.

Chikafusa was slightly shocked at the amount of people that got a reaction out of, "Ho ho ho, this will be a very interesting exam. Fights between friends are good, but fights between lovers are the best."

"Uncle, quit teasing everybody." Chiyoko chided. However, deep down, she was afraid of the possibility she would have to fight Chouji.

Chikafusa just laughed at his niece's reaction. He stuck his hand into his bag of snacks. His eyes widened in horror at what he found. "I'm out of Funyuns." Chikafusa said to no one in particular, "This must be remedied. 54! Go get some Funyuns!"

"But, sir, the store will be closed by the time I make it into town." The chuunin now designated as 54 responded.

"Then you better hurry!" Chikafusa shouted, "Or there will be much pain in your immediate future."

"H-Hai!" 54 replied as he took off.

"Congratulations on making it to the next round, or the preliminaries at least." Chikafusa said as he turned to leave, "Later, Chi."

"Bye bye, Uncle Chika!" Chiyoko responded with enthusiasm.

The sixteen genin continued their previous conversations. More than a few comments were passed around about how odd the proctor was.

"Almost as bad as Guy-sensei." Tenten muttered under her breath to Neji.

"Agreed." Neji whispered back.

* * *

Team 10 arrived at the base at around noon the next day. They had actually made better time than they had planned.

"Haku-kun!" Ino shouted almost as soon as they entered the building.

"Ino, it's not like he's going to be waiting for you at the entrance..." Tsuneni began to say.

"Ino-chan!" Haku came running, "I've been wondering when you guys were going to make it."

"It took longer than I would have liked, but we finally got here." Ino said as she drew the taller boy down to her level. Haku took the hint and planted his lips lovingly on hers.

"I stand corrected." Tsuneni stated as she watched the exchange.

Chouji chuckled before he left Haku and Ino to their own devices, "I'm going to go see if they have anything to eat."

"I'll come with you. The food of the desert was not very appealing." Sai said.

Tsuneni, not wanting to be left alone or with the lovebirds, decided to tag along as well. The last they heard of Ino was her giggling happily as Haku took her off somewhere.

The three of them found the kitchen easily enough and grabbed a bite to eat.

"Chouji-kun!" Chiyoko called out. She had been on her way to grab lunch. She was pleasantly surprised to see the portly Akimichi in the kitchen. She launched herself at him, knocking him off of his seat and into the floor with her. "When did you get in?"

"Just now." Chouji replied, "How are you?"

"Good." Chiyoko piped up happily from her position on top of him.

"I'm glad to hear it." Chouji replied, "Think you can do me a favor, Chiyoko-chan?"

"What's that, Chouji-kun?" Chiyoko answered.

"Get off me so I can get back to my meal?" Chouji made his favor known.

Chiyoko finally took notice of the position that they were in and the fact that he had been eating when she showed up, "Sorry, Chouji-kun. I was just so happy to see you made it through okay."

"It's fine, but I'm really hungry." Chouji replied.

"Yeah I came to get something to eat too." Chiyoko said as she went to grab something to eat for herself.

"Who all as made is so far, if you don't mind me asking?" Tsuneni said as Chiyoko came back with her own plate.

"Well there's my team, you guys, Naruto's team, Lee's team, and Shiroi's team." Chiyoko informed them.

"So five teams out of ten have made it so far." Sai said, "There's just under eight hours left. I wonder how many more will make it."

"Unknown." Tsuneni replied. "However, it seems like another preliminary round will be needed."

"It seems that will be the case." Chiyoko replied.

"Oh well. We knew this could happen again." Chouji said, "We'll just have to make the best of it."

* * *

A few hours later, the second exam was officially ended with no other teams clearing after Team 10 had made it in. Thusly, the twenty chuunin hopefuls found themselves standing in front of the exam proctors. They were in a rather large concrete room that had nothing in it, it was large enough to work as the battlefield for the preliminaries, but there was nowhere for the spectators to get clear of the action.

"Congratulations to you all for passing the second exam." Chikafusa informed the genin, "I'm sure your time in the desert wasn't exactly pleasant. However, you have persevered and made it to this point. I'm handing you off to the proctor of the third exam, Kotone Nakayama."

"Thank you, Chikafusa." The woman said as she took over the meeting. She was stunning. She had long platinum hair tied back into a ponytail that dropped to her waist, and piercing blue eyes. "I see that we only have two new people here. So, for the sake of time, I'm going to skip the usual introductory speech about what this test means and get straight to the point. We have twenty prospective finalists; this calls for a preliminary round. However, more than three-fourths of you were here last time around in Konoha. Therefore, I'm invoking the rule to skip the preliminaries and head straight to the final round of the exam."

"No preliminary?" Kiba asked, slightly shocked.

"That's correct. Azumamaro, Chikafusa, and I will put it to a vote. If the majority of us agree that it's best, then we will be skipping the preliminaries. So, how about it, fellas?" Kotone asked.

"I agree." Azumamaro answered, "This one of the most outstanding groups of genin I've ever seen."

"I say yes." Chikafusa replied, "These guys intrigue me. I'm interested in how they'll do."

"I also agree, after having watched them over the course of these two exams." Kotone said, "Since we stand in agreement, the preliminaries will be skipped. However, this changes how the exams will be held. In order to keep the action rolling and the nobles interested, you all will be fighting in teams of two."

"What?" Sakura asked. Obito hadn't mentioned this.

"Normally, the exams are a one on one affair in order to gauge individual skills and capabilities. However, with so many contestants, there will simply be too many battles. Therefore, the solution is to split you all up into team of two. However, you don't need to be too worried about how this will affect your chances to become chuunin, you'll still be graded in the same way. Now, you'll need to choose your partners."

Naruto immediately turned to Hinata. She smiled at him and replied to his unasked question, "Of course, Naruto-kun. I wouldn't have it any other way."

"We'll rock this exam for sure." Naruto said happily.

"Kotone-san?" Ino asked.

"Yes?" Kotone replied.

"Can we pair up with whoever we want, or does it have to be a person from our team?" Ino asked.

Kotone thought this question was odd, "I suppose you can pair up with someone outside your team, but..."

"Haku-kun!" Ino shouted as soon as she got the answer she wanted.

"Of course, Ino-chan." Haku replied.

Soon everyone was pairing off into teams of two. As soon as the genin had finished pairing off, they drew lots. They fell in the following order:

Team 1: Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki

Team 2: Chouji Akimichi and Chiyoko Guujin

Team 3: Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha

Team 4: Kaen Kanadzuchi and Rock Lee

Team 5 Neji Hyuga and Tenten Saseru

Team 6: Haku Kousetsu and Ino Yamanaka

Team 7: Sai and Tsuneni Tadashii

Team 8: Kiba Inuzuka and Tayuya Kurashikku

Team 9: Kankuro Sukimakaze and Temari Sukimakaze

Team 10: Gaara of the Desert and Shiroi Wangetsu

"What the hell is going on?" Kotone asked, "Why are Suna ninja pairing up with Konoha ninja? Most of them paired up with people that aren't even on their team."

"I think it's due to the experiences this particular group has shared, Kotone." Azumamaro answered her, "I've been reading over their personnel files. Interestingly, these two groups have been so interwoven since the last chuunin exam that it doesn't surprise me that they have split up like this. I think it's a testament to the strength of the bonds being formed by our two villages. Bonds that won't break until the reasons and people that forged them are long gone."

"Hmm..." Kotone hummed as she pondered Azumamaro's words, "In any rate, it will make things very interesting. I wonder how a Suna crowd will react to two teams comprised of one Suna ninja with one Konoha ninja."

"It will be very interesting." Chikafusa said happily, "This is shaping up to be the greatest chuunin exam ever seen."

"I agree." Azumamaro concurred.

"Well, let's get on with business." Kotone said loudly, both to reply to her fellow proctors and to catch the attention of the genin, "We'll now be drawing for the first round pairings." Kotone then added ten numbered slips to a bag and shook it up.

"Round one, match one will be: Team 5, Neji Hyuga and Tenten Saseru, versus Team 9, Kankuro Sukimakaze and Temari Sukimakaze." Kotone said as she pulled numbers 5 and 9 from the bag. She shook the bag again and reached in.

"Match two will be: Team 8, Kiba Inuzuka and Tayuya Kurashikku, versus Team 1, Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki" Kotone intoned as she pulled out numbers 8 and 1.

"Match three is: Team 3, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha, versus Team 2, Chouji Akimichi and Chiyoko Guujin.

"Match four: Team 4, Kaen Kanadzuchi and Rock Lee, versus Team 6, Haku Kousetsu and Ino Yamanaka.

"That leaves the final match as Team 7, Sai and Tsuneni Tadashii, versus Team 10, Gaara of the Desert and Shiroi Wangetsu." Kotone finished pairing up the rounds. Azumamaro wrote all the pairings down and then showed the pairings to the genin again, to make it clear that everyone knew who they were fighting.

"As last time, there will be a one month wait before the final rounds start. You can do whatever you wish with that time, however I believe you should use it to train and improve yourselves." Kotone said, "I'll see you again in one month's time."

The genin all nodded and left the room. Outside a large escort was preparing to trek back across the desert and back to Suna. Everyone gathered what modest belongings they had decided to bring with them and made to depart for Suna.

Obito was talking with his team, "That's unheard of. Two versus two in the final rounds."

"Yeah, Hinata-hime and I have Kiba and Tayuya in the first round." Naruto said.

"Sasuke-kun and I have Chouji and Chiyoko." Sakura added.

"This is very interesting." Obito said, "It probably won't affect your ability to become chuunin, but you never know. However, I think I have a training program in mind for you all that will be of great help."

"Really?" Naruto asked happily.

"Yeah, but give me a couple of days to really plan through it all. Also I want you to know that trainers are coming from Konoha. Suna has given us permission for us to bring in our own trainers for the exam. So, Kiyoshi, Kakashi, Rin, and Jiraiya should be coming soon. However, Naruto, Jiraiya said he might be a little late, one of his contacts has went missing, and Jiraiya's currently trying to track him down."

"That's okay." Naruto said, "I just have one favor to ask."

"What's that?" Obito said.

"Can you put in a request for father to be given permission to come as a trainer?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, but may I ask why?" Obito said.

"I have something I'm working on with him, and I want to try and finish it before the final rounds come, I think it would be helpful." Naruto replied.

"Okay, I'll see what I can do." Obito replied. "I'll go try to make the arrangements as soon as we get back. If we're lucky he'll still be able to get on with the first wave of people coming over."

Hinata looked over at Naruto. During the months before the exams, Naruto and Hiashi would spend large amounts of time locked up in the dojo by themselves. She didn't know what kind of training they were doing, but it had to be something more than the basic Jyuuken training that Naruto was doing. She decided it was time to ask about it.

"Naruto, may I ask you something?" Hinata asked as the large group heading to Suna got to moving.

"What is it, Hinata-hime?" Naruto asked.

"What are you working on with father?" Hinata asked.

Naruto looked at her intently, "I want to keep that a secret until I finish it, but, when I do finish it, you'll be the first to know. Is that okay?"

"I guess..." Hinata said, "I just want to know what's going on with you."

"I know, hime." Naruto said, "Just wait for now, okay."

"Okay." Hinata agreed.

* * *

Over the next couple of days, a stream of Konoha ninjas entered Suna. Among them were Team 7's trainers, Hiashi Hyuga, Tsume Inuzuka, Inoichi Yamanaka, Choza Akimichi, and a few others. The teams of two got to work almost immediately, everyone working on teamwork and figuring out the weaknesses of their particular opponents.

Obito's training schedule for Team 7 was brutal. He had them working on the jutsus and other such things they had been working on in the mornings, but the afternoons were almost nothing but two on two sparring. Each team working on and perfecting their teamwork. During the evenings everyone met with their personal instructors. Jiraiya hadn't shown up yet, which left Naruto lots of time working with Hiashi on his special project.

After a week passed, Jiraiya showed up to help Naruto along with his training.

"So what are you going to teach me this time, Ero-sennin?" Naruto asked.

Jiraiya responded in anger, "I told you to quit calling me that, punk."

"Whatever, what are you going to teach me?" Naruto prodded again.

"An extension technique of your Shadow Clone Jutsu." Jiraiya said.

"An extension of the Shadow Clone Jutsu?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, the Shadow Clone Explosion." Jiraiya said, "This jutsu creates a special version of the Shadow Clone that can be detonated on command. The damage caused by this technique is severe."

"That's awesome!" Naruto shouted in exhilaration.

"Yeah, I figured you would like it." Jiraiya said. "Come on, it's a little dangerous to test in the middle of town. We need to head out into the desert."

"Alright!" Naruto said happily as he followed Jiraiya out of the town and into the desert.

"Okay, watch carefully." Jiraiya said as he showed off the slightly more complex hand seals. "Shadow Clone Explosion Jutsu!" Suddenly, there was another Jiraiya. The clone quickly moved away from the two of them.

"To make the clone explode, you simply make this simple hand sign and mentally think about the clone exploding and..." Jiraiya explained. BOOM! The clone Jiraiya exploded in a majestic fireball.

"Wow...." Naruto said as he gazed at the technique in wonderment. The explosion resulting from the clone was massive. Much bigger than he was expecting.

"Now, let's get to work. If you set the chakra in the clone wrong, it'll blow up as soon as it's summoned. So expect to take a beating mastering this one." Jiraiya said as he set to showing Naruto the technique.

"Okay..." Naruto said as he got to work.

* * *

Naruto was a mess. Training in the Shadow Clone Explosion Jutsu was rough, and he had quite a few of the clones blow up in his face, just like Jiraiya had mentioned. That and he wasn't sure how he was going to do all of his training. He just couldn't keep up. Trying to learn from Jiraiya and master the technique he was working on with Hiashi while doing Obito's training was too much.

"What's wrong?" Obito asked as he strode up to Naruto.

"I can't keep up with all the training I'm trying to do..." Naruto said. "I just wish there was more of me."

"Well that's an odd statement coming from you, Naruto." Obito said.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked. Obito just about wanted to slap the boy for being so dense.

"I mean you can make more of yourself, right?" Obito asked.

"Yeah, but their clones..." Naruto said.

"Naruto, make me a clone." Obito said.

"...Okay." Naruto said as he did what was asked. Obito immediately grabbed the clone and took him around the corner out of sight. He then punched the clone square in the face, dispelling it.

"Naruto, What number did I give you?" Obito asked.

"42, why?" Naruto said as he thought about it, "Wait a second... I remember the experiences that my clones have...."

_Finally._ Obito thought as he said, "Right, so you can be in more than one place at once, learning multiple things at the same time."

"Thanks, Obito-sensei. This is going to help a lot!" Naruto said excitedly as he ran off.

"I worry about that kid sometimes..." Obito said as he continued his stroll through Suna, "Now, where did Rin get off to?"

* * *

Naruto used the next two and a half weeks to his fullest advantage. Now that he knew he could effectively train with his Shadow Clones. He figured out in the first day that he had to take it easy in how much each clone learned. If he tried to assimilate too much information at once, it gave him a debilitating headache that would not go away for hours. So, slowly and surely, he upped his training regimen with clones until he found an optimal balance. This was how he was able to master everything on his plate in the short amount of time he had. Everyone else had a month of training; Naruto squeezed in years.

"Hinata-hime!" Naruto shouted with exuberance, breaking Hinata of her concentration on her second stage Rasengan training. Hinata was getting close, she could feel it.

"Yes, Naruto-kun?" Hinata replied.

"Come on, I've finished it. You've got to see!" Naruto said, excitement plain on his voice.

"You mean the technique you've been working on with father?" Hinata asked.

"Yes." Naruto replied, "Come on!"

Hinata allowed Naruto to drag her off to the area in which he and Hiashi had been training, a small dojo that Hiashi had rented from a local instructor for the month. Hinata and Naruto entered the dojo. Hiashi was standing there waiting for their return.

"Hello, Hinata." Hiashi said warmly, "I'm sorry we haven't had a chance to see each other much, but Naruto here has been eating up most of my time. He's very persistent.

"Dad..." Naruto pouted.

Hinata giggled, "Yes, I know how he is."

"Anyway, he wanted you to be the first to see what he's been working on. Naruto?" Hiashi said.

"Okay, first things first." Naruto said as he splayed his arms wide, in a stance similar to Neji's when he uses the Sixty-four palms. "Kaiten!" Naruto shouted as he spun rapidly a perfect blue dome of chakra surrounding him. However, there was one key difference between his Kaiten and the rest of the Hyuga's Kaiten. His was almost twice as large.

"Wow..." Hinata said as she witnessed the massive technique.

"Because of his tenant, Naruto has much more chakra available to him than most everyone in the Hyuga clan. It creates a much more impressive Kaiten as he can use much more chakra than we do." Hiashi explained, "Which also brings us to the true reason that he's been training."

Naruto stopped his Kaiten and assumed his Jyuuken stance.

"As you know, the Jyuuken uses very little chakra. It doesn't take much to damage the internal organs or chakra system of an opponent. However, Naruto here has been pushing things a little farther. Note the target." Hiashi continued the demonstration.

Hinata looked at the target dummy set up in the room. She recognized as a one of special design, specially made to register Jyuuken strikes. Hiashi must have brought it with him. Whenever the target was hit with pure chakra, as was the case of a Jyuuken strike, the padding would change from white to blue. Naruto was standing a good twenty feet away from the target.

"Jyuuken!" Naruto shouted as he struck the air.

"What are you...." Hinata started to ask her question, but stopped when she saw the tummy starting to turn blue in the torso. "What?"

"You know the Air Palm doesn't register on these dummies. That was a pure and true Jyuuken strike delivered from twenty feet. Such a thing has never been seen." Hiashi stated.

"Byakugan!" Hinata intoned as she activated her dojutsu, "Please do that again, Naruto."

Naruto nodded and did as requested, "Jyuuken!"

Hinata watched in amazement as what was the normal blue glow of the Jyuuken extended from Naruto's palm and into the dummy. Her father was correct, it was indeed a long range Jyuuken strike. It was amazing. "How..."

"He pours much more chakra into his strike than is needed. I noticed it when I was training him in the basic Jyuuken maneuvers. His Jyuuken strikes would actually exit out of the back of the target. We talked about it and decided to see if we could actually create a ranged Jyuuken attack, this is the result." Hiashi explained.

"Pretty cool, isn't it?" Naruto asked.

"That's amazing!" Hinata exclaimed.

"Heh, this exam is going to be a piece of cake." Naruto said happily as Hinata began to ask him and Hiashi questions about this new Jyuuken attack.

* * *

A/N

Bomberman: I know a lot of people say things that happen in the anime only aren't really canon, but I distinctly remember Sasori using a sand clone to distract Kankuro, so there is precedent for other people using the sand clone. Also, they're ninja in a town surrounded by sand, you'd think they would learn how to take advantage of it.

Zelara: I guess depends on how you actually see the teams. I always thought of them as three man squads with a Jonin instructor, so that's why I named it Four Man Squads.

I hope you all enjoyed Chapter 18. I also hope you like the twist I've added to the final rounds. Thank you for reading, and I hope the New Year finds you in better circumstances than the last. Please review.

Happy New Year!


	19. Chapter 19 Round One

Four Man Squads

Chapter 19 - Round One

Naruto and Hinata were casually strolling hand in hand through the streets of Suna. There were two days before the start of the final rounds. Both of them had agreed that they should use these two days to relax and make sure they were fully prepared for the battle to come.

"Hinata-hime..." Naruto said to his princess.

"What is it, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"I owe you an apology for missing your birthday. I was so busy with training that I completely forgot about it." Naruto said sadly.

Hinata knew he forgot, but she didn't really mind. He was so focused on achieving this next step on his path to Hokage, that she couldn't really blame him, "It's okay, Naruto-kun. I was caught up in my training as well. I barely remembered it myself." Hinata tried to console him. However, when she turned to look at the blond genin she was surprised to see a lavender and indigo wrapped box between them.

"Happy Birthday, Hinata." Naruto said with a smile.

"Naruto-kun, you didn't have to..." Hinata started before Naruto cut her off.

"Stop that." Naruto said, "You went out of your way to give me a nice birthday, the least I could do is get you something for yours. Next year, I promise we'll have an official birthday party for you."

Hinata nodded and gently took the gift from Naruto. She carefully unwrapped the present to reveal a golden box with what looked like to be the seal of one of the more popular jewelers in Suna. She opened up the lid to reveal a bracelet made of stones that had a remarkable green coloring. They almost looked like emeralds, however the green color wasn't quite as dark as an emerald would be. The stones were utterly breathtaking.

"Naruto-kun, what is this?" Hinata asked as she continued to look at the masterful piece of jewelry.

"Hold it up to the sun, hime." Naruto told her. Hinata did as he said and held up the bracelet to the sky. She gasped in surprise as the bracelet lit up as it caught the sun's rays. The light refracted brilliantly inside the stones, each one twinkling as though it was a star.

"They're 'Stars of the Desert'." Naruto answered her question, "The jeweler said they're also known as Sand Emeralds. The giant worms that live out in Suna's desert secrete a substance that helps them move underground. Whenever that substance mixes with sand and is touched by sunlight for an extended period of time, one of those gems is formed. Apparently, the trail we followed in the second exam was made of these things."

"Naruto, how could you afford something like this?" Hinata asked. She was sure the piece must have cost a small fortune.

"Well, I did do two A-rank missions." Naruto replied, "The pay off of those two missions were more than I could ever use now that I'm living with you and father. So, I figured what better way to use the money than to buy a nice belated birthday gift for my girlfriend."

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata said as she took in the breathtaking sight of the bracelet, "It's wonderful, thank you."

Naruto chuckled a bit at Hinata's reaction before wrapping his arm around her shoulder, "Now, to finish making up for what I missed. This day is all yours, Hinata-hime. Whatever you want to do, we'll do."

Hinata nodded happily before dragging Naruto through the streets. She already had a good idea of what she wanted to do with him for the day. There had been a few interesting places throughout Suna, and she wanted to see them all.

* * *

All 10 teams were standing side by side as the stadium full of people watched on. All of the genin could see Tsunade, wearing the traditional Hokage's robes, in a private section of the stands. There was another reserved seat beside her. Everyone knew that seat would not be filled today. Suna had yet to choose it's next Kazekage.

Kotone appeared in front of the hopefuls and began to give them a run down of how everything was to go, "Alright, there are a few rules you need to know before we get started. First thing, the fight will continue until one member of the team cannot continue or surrenders. At that point I will stop the match and the winner will be declared. Second, any and all jutsus and abilities are legal. There are no holds barred. Remember, you are fighting for the pride of your villages."

Kotone then Turned to the crowd, "I present to you the finalists of Suna's chuunin exam. Hokage-sama, various lords and nobles, and fellow citizens of Suna, The final rounds of the chuunin exam will now begin. Unlike most exams where the combatants battle one on one, we've had an extraordinary amount of exceptional genin this time. Therefore, the battles are going to be two versus two. Without further ado, the first match of the first round is Neji Hyuga and Tenten Saseru versus Kankuro Sukimakaze and Temari Sukimakaze."

The crowd erupted in support of the two children of the late Kazekage. This was very different for the Konoha ninja. They didn't have the home field advantage this time around.

The four genin involved in the first match stayed on the arena floor, the rest retreated to a waiting room where they were to watch the fight on a closed circuit television.

Neji made a quick scan of the area around them. Unlike the arena for the fights back in Konoha, this arena was barren. The arena floor was sand and there was nothing that provided any cover. That was good for Tenten and himself. There was nowhere for their opponent's to hide. From what Neji remembered about the two sand genins' abilities from the last exam, Temari almost exclusively used wind-based jutsu and the only skill Kankuro showed was his puppets.

"Are all of the combatants ready?" Kotone asked.

Neji and Tenten silently nodded.

"Yeah." Temari said as she opened her fan.

"Let's do this." Kankuro replied as he dropped the two bundles he was carrying on his back.

"Begin!" Kotone shouted as she leapt out of the way of the combatants.

Kankuro wasted no time unleashing his puppets at Neji. Temari immediately sent a blast of wind at Tenten. On the other side, Neji activated his Byakugan and Tenten pulled out some scrolls while she weathered the storm.

Neji easily avoided the attacks of both of Kankuro's puppets. With the Byakugan activated he could see the chakra strings attached to the puppets. With the correct movements he could start severing the puppeteer's ties to his weapons.

Tenten unleashed her counterattack against Temari after the windstorm was over. Tenten then threw the scroll high into the air, "Rising Dragon!" Tenten then followed the scroll into the air. She began to rain small weapons upon Temari. Temari smirked unconcernedly as she used a simple wave of her fan to bat all of the weapons out of the air.

"That's going to be hard to get past..." Tenten said as she landed.

Neji was disconnecting Kankuro from his puppets, but Kankuro was reattaching his strings as quickly as Neji cut them. Neji realized that this was a useless effort and that he was going to have to go after the puppet master directly. Rushing past the two puppets, Neji fully intended to unleash the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms on the puppet master.

"You are in my field of divina..." Neji started his attack, but never finished.

"Wind Scythe Jutsu!" Temari yelled as she blasted Neji away from Kankuro. The two siblings took up a new formation with Temari in front of Kankuro while the puppets attacked Tenten and Neji.

"This is frustrating." Neji stated as he continued to dodge the attacks from Karasu.

"I would have to agree." Tenten answered as she whacked Kuroari with a large club conjured from one of her scrolls.

"We can't get close or use your long-range weapons because of her attacks." Neji stated, "Unless we find a way to break her defense, we're doomed."

"I have an idea." Tenten stated, "You'll have to remind me to thank Naruto and Sasuke for this one."

"I think I know what you have in mind. Let's try it." Neji replied. He rushed forward towards Temari and Kankuro, but stopped halfway between them and Tenten.

Tenten planted two scrolls on the ground. After making a few hand seals both seals exploded upwards in two clouds of smoke that resembled dragons. "Twin Rising Dragons!"

Tenten rained iron death upon Temari and Kankuro.

"Cyclone Scythe Jutsu!" Temari shouted as she used her wind attack to deflect the weapons back towards Tenten. However, this was the plan as Neji jumped up in the path of the weapons.

"Kaiten!" Neji shouted as the he used his rotation to deflect the weapons again. Temari was caught off guard by the maneuver and wouldn't be able to recover in time to save herself or her brother. However, Kankuro was on top of things. Karasu grabbed Temari and used it's body to block for her while Kuroari opened up and Kankuro ducked inside it. The rain of thrown weapons landed harmlessly around and in the puppets.

"That was a neat trick." Temari said as Karasu released her.

"But, it wasn't enough." Kankuro said as he stepped out of Kuroari.

"Damn." Neji cursed under his breath. This was going to be a hard fight. Kankuro and Temari covered each others weaknesses very well. However, between him and Tenten, he was the only one with any sort of defensive techniques. Tenten's abilities were all aggressive and attack oriented. This was turning out to be a pretty bad match-up for them.

As soon as the two Suna genin got clear of the puppets, Kankuro resumed his attacks.

"We've got to close the gap somehow." Tenten said as she fended off attacks from Karasu.

Neji racked his brain for a plan to get within range for the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms or to get Tenten's projectiles to land. No, he didn't have to get that close, he just needed to shut down the puppets. If he could do that, then Kankuro would be useless in the fight. He remembered how useless Kankuro looked in the previous exam when Kaen melted the joints in his puppet. While Neji didn't have any jutsu powerful enough to do something like that, he could shut off the chakra flow to Kankuro's hands which should have a similar, if not better, effect.

"Tenten, do you think you can distract Temari for just a little bit?" Neji asked.

"I can try, Neji-kun." Tenten replied. Neji nodded in acceptance and moved away from Tenten. He simply waited until Tenten made her move. The puppet was annoying, but nothing Neji couldn't deal with.

Soon Neji saw Tenten use Karasu's face as a launch pad, and he saw her attach chakra strings to all of her fallen weapons. Neji knew this was his chance to attack, he knocked Kuroari away and moved to attack Kankuro. Tenten moved all the weapons up into the air with a flourish of her hand, and just as quickly sent them after Temari.

Temari smirked, "This trick won't work, Wind Scythe Jutsu!" she shouted as she knocked all the weapons away and the attack hit the mid-air Tenten head on. The wind blast cut at Tenten's skin. Seeing her chance at a victory, Temari took off towards the falling body of Tenten intent on ending the fight.

"Temari!" Kankuro shouted as Neji closed in. In a flash the pale-eyed genin closed off all of the tenketsu in and leading to Kankuro's hands, and finished up with a Jyuuken strike to the chest, enough power behind it to knock the Suna nin out.

Temari spun around, Tenten's limp form folded oddly across her fan. She dropped Tenten's body as Neji dropped Kankuro's. The puppets fell to the ground useless. Kotone appeared in between the two still standing genin.

"This appears to have been a double knockout." Kotone said, "In the traditional one-on-one fights, this would result in a loss for both competitors. However, due to the unique nature of this exam, I am continuing this bout as a one-on-one between Temari Sukimakaze and Neji Hyuga. If the med-nins would please come clear the fallen combatants, we will continue the bout."

The med-nins came out and quickly took Tenten and Kankuro away to be looked at. Everything else was left were it was, as it would be in a true battle.

Kotone looked at both contestants making sure they were both ready to continue, "Resume!"

Temari opened up with a Cyclone Scythe Jutsu, making Neji dodge the chakra enhanced wind. She immediately followed up with Wind Scythe after Wind Scythe. She wasn't giving Neji any time to breathe. She knew that, if he got close, she would lose.

Neji was trying to figure out how he was going to get close to Temari. She was making sure to keep as much distance as possible between them. The only move in his arsenal that could hit from range was the Air Palm, but it lacked horribly in power when compared to Temari's jutsu. But, then again, he didn't have to hit her with it... ..._This is going to hurt._

Neji charged head long at Temari. He was betting his and Tenten's exam on this maneuver. Temari squared off to him and reared her giant fan back.

"Cyclone Scythe Jutsu!" Temari shouted as she sent the blast at Neji.

"Eight Trigrams: Air Palm!" Neji announced as he shot his own blast of air at Temari. The weaker attack had its intended effect, it broke enough of Temari's blast to allow Neji through, even though the Cyclone Scythe still damaged him heavily. Temari's eyes widened in shock as Neji barreled towards her, she was off balance from her attack and would not be able to get in a second swing.

"You are in my field of divination." Neji intoned, "Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms!"

"Two Palms!" Temari felt two strikes to her chest.

"Four Palms!" Temari could feel more of her tenketsu close on her shoulders.

"Eight Palms!" Temari's arms shut down.

"Sixteen Palms!" Temari's legs were starting to feel weak.

"Thirty-two Palms!" Temari's fan clattered to the ground.

"Sixty-four Palms!" Temari flew backwards from the strength of the attack. She landed roughly and did not get back up.

Kotone inspected the damage, "Winner of match one, Neji Hyuga and Tenten Saseru."

The crowd responded with a chorus of boos as the only true Suna team in the final rounds had been knocked out in the first round. Neji, however, didn't care. He immediately headed to the infirmary both to get his own wounds tended to and to check up on Tenten.

* * *

"Will the contestants for match two, Kiba Inuzuka and Tayuya Kurashikku and Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki, please report to the arena floor." Kotone announced.

Kiba and Tayuya exited the waiting room first. Hinata and Naruto followed, however, halfway through the hallway to the arena floor, Hinata stopped.

"What's wrong, hime?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto..." Hinata started, "I can't use all of my abilities in these fights..."

"I know, hime." Naruto replied, "There is no doubt that there are main family members watching this. If they saw you use any of the abilities that Kiyoshi-sensei has taught you, I imagine they'll eventually put two and two together. If that were to happen, you would be in a lot of trouble."

"So, I can only use my Jyuuken skills and the academy taught jutsus. That's all the others think I know." Hinata said, "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun."

"It's no problem, Hinata-chan." Naruto replied reassuringly, "There's some things that are more important than these exams."

"Thanks, Naruto-kun." Hinata said as they continued their trek out toward the arena floor.

"For what?" Naruto asked, clueless.

"For understanding." Hinata replied.

"Don't worry about it, hime." Naruto replied with a smile, "We gotta have some sort of handicap, or things just wouldn't be interesting."

Hinata smiled back at Naruto, "I guess you're right, Naruto-kun." While she was nowhere near as confident as he was, she believed in him.

"Let's rock this party." Naruto said confidently as he and Hinata walked into the clearing.

Kotone wasted no time in getting the match started, "Are the combatants ready?"

"Yahoo!" Kiba yelled while Akamaru barked loudly.

"Damn straight." Tayuya said.

"You guys are going down." Naruto taunted as Hinata wordlessly nodded her head.

"Begin!" Kotone announced the beginning of the match.

"Beast Mimicry: All-Fours Jutsu!" Kiba shouted as Tayuya took up position behind Kiba. She got out her flute and began to play a haunting melody. Kiba finished his minor transformation and launched himself at Naruto.

Naruto and Hinata were caught off guard by the flute and the sound emanating from it. Both of them were dealing with extremely blurred and wavy vision, as if the world around them was made of murky water.

"Genjutsu!" Hinata called out to Naruto as she ran placed her hands in an all to familiar sign, "Byakugan!"

However, Hinata was shocked when her vision did not return to normal. Everything was still blurred and wavy. _What is this? Why can't my Byakugan see through this, unless... the genjutsu isn't affecting my eyes! It's assaulting my ears from that flute!_

Naruto, meanwhile, was taking one hell of a beating. Kiba had turned Akamaru into a clone, and it was taking everything Naruto had to keep from getting obliterated by the Gatsuuga.

_This isn't good... _Naruto thought, _This genjutsu is messing me up pretty good. I need to break this somehow. _Naruto delved back into his memories, trying to come up with someway to combat this genjutsu. He still couldn't master the Genjutsu Release technique. He thought back to a conversation he had with Obito after the Suna-Oto Invasion.

"Obito-sensei, I can't get the hang of this Genjutsu Release. What am I doing wrong?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing." Obito replied, "For the Genjutsu Release Jutsu to work, you have to stop all the chakra flow in your body, then jump start it with a great amount of strength in order to imbalance the controller's chakra. However, since you have the Kyuubi in you, it's impossible for you to completely shut off your chakra flow. You're going to have to modify the technique for yourself. I suggest trying on pulling out Kyuubi's chakra in a large burst. That should create a similar effect."

Naruto focused on the Kyuubi's chakra. _Come on, you damn fox, I need some help here..._ Naruto could feel the surge of raw power throughout his system. With a primal shout he used a short burst of chakra to disrupt Tayuya's control over her genjutsu.

Not wanting to give Tayuya a chance to recover, Naruto tried to attack the flute-playing genjutsu user. However, Kiba and Akamaru ran interference.

"Gatsuuga!" Kiba roared as he attacked the blond genin. Naruto was tiring of this game. He waited until Kiba and Akamaru were in range...

"Kaiten!" Naruto announced as he made his spin. The force of the defensive jutsu knocked Kiba and Akamaru away from each other. The force of the impact against the ground, forced Akamaru to revert to his normal form, he looked to be out of the fight for the moment.

There was a stunned silence in the small portion of the arena that held the Hyuga family members that could make the trip to Suna for the exams. All of them were shocked, and some were appalled, that Naruto knew the Kaiten. That meant Hiashi had taught it to him.

However, this wasn't Naruto's concern as he settled into his Jyuuken stance as he squared off against Kiba.

"How in the hell did you do that?" Kiba shouted his question, "That's a Hyuga jutsu! Quit playing around like you know their techniques. What was the trick?"

"I thought you knew that I had been adopted by the Hyuga clan." Naruto replied, "Come."

Hinata had released herself of the genjutsu and sped off to take care of Tayuya while Kiba was distracted by Naruto. She reached the red-haired kunoichi easily, however the victory in close combat wasn't as easy as she believed it would be. Tayuya had obviously trained a great deal in taijutsu. She managed to avoid most of Hinata's dangerous Jyuuken blows, taking only minor hits to the extremities. Tayuya responded to the assault by launching a set of kunai and shuriken to create some distance between herself and Hinata. She bit her thumb and began running through hand signs. Hinata immediately recognized what was coming.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Tayuya shouted as she slammed her palm to the ground. In three explosions of smoke three giant humanoids appeared on the battlefield. Tayuya smirked as she lifted the flute to her mouth. The melody that played was different than the one that created the initial genjutsu. And with the melody, the giant warriors began to move.

_That's not good. _Hinata thought, _I haven't been able to summon anything comparable to that yet._ Hinata settled in for what was looking to be a tough fight.

Kiba was getting pummeled. He couldn't believe it, but Naruto was actually whipping him up and down with what looked to be the genuine Jyuuken stance. Even with his increased speed and agility due to the All-Fours Jutsu, Kiba couldn't land a blow on Naruto. Kiba needed a new plan. He carefully fought his way over to Akamaru, who was starting to wake.

"Here, boy!" Kiba said as he tossed a pill to Akamaru. Akamaru's fur turned red as he devoured the pill. Akamaru then hopped on Kiba's back while Kiba ran through some hand signs, "Inuzuka Style: Man Beast Transformation Combo: Two-Headed Wolf!"

Naruto took a couple of involuntary steps back from the giant two headed version of Akamaru.

"Here we go!" the "Kiba" head of wolf yelled, "Garouga!"

The technique came at Naruto way too fast. Naruto barely dodged at the last second, but was still cut pretty heavily from the result of the attack.

"That's pretty cool." Naruto admitted as he watched the spiraling mass of dog head back for him. Out of the corner of his eye he could see that Hinata was dealing three giant monsters. Sadly, He couldn't help her as he had his own problem.

Naruto made sure to get well clear this time to avoid the residual damage of the Garouga. "Looks like I'm going to have to break out something bigger to deal with this." Naruto said as he made a series of signs that ended in a very familiar one, "Shadow Clone Explosion Jutsu!"

Four clones popped into existence. One stayed to help the real Naruto while the other three went to Hinata's aid.

"Alright, let's see how your jutsu holds up to mine!" Naruto shouted as the Shadow clone aided him in forming the Rasengan. Naruto jumped to meet the two-headed wolf head on. There was no dodging this time. Naruto planted the Rasengan right in the middle of the whirling mass. The result was explosive. Both of the jutsu's met head on and neither would give for a brief moment, then suddenly both Naruto and the wolf were rocketed away in opposite directions as the force of the two jutsu's burst. Naruto made a decent side crater into the side of the arena wall while the wolf skidded across the ground before slamming the wall on the other side of the arena. Kiba and Akamaru lost their transformation, and Kiba emerged holding onto an injured Akamaru.

Naruto stood up, and took a quick toll of his injuries. Dislocated shoulder, sprained ankle, three dislocated fingers, and, judging from his slightly blurred vision, a mild concussion. _Yeah, that probably wasn't the greatest idea_. Naruto thought as he popped his shoulder and fingers back into place. The sprained ankle was already healed, and he could feel the fogginess leaving his brain, which meant Kyuubi was working on the concussion.

Hinata was glad to receive some assistance from the Naruto clones. Each of them was tangling with one of the giants. Hinata was trying to make her way to Tayuya, but the Tayuya would always move one of her summons in the way to intercept. Hinata was getting slightly frustrated. If it hadn't been for her Byakugan, she would've missed Kiba disengage from his fight with Naruto to attack her. She quickly spun around the incoming swipe and retaliated with a shot to Kiba's back. Kiba didn't stay to fight as he retreated to Tayuya's side. Two more Naruto's came up to her, she assumed one of them had to be the real one.

"Everything okay, hime?" Naruto asked.

"More or less. I can't get close to her. Her summons are very quick and strong." Hinata replied.

"I have an idea." Naruto said, "I need you to make an all out attack against Kiba and Tayuya, but right before you get there, stop and use your Kaiten, even if there's no one around. I hate to do it, but I need you to be a distraction."

Hinata looked at the Naruto addressing her and nodded, "Alright."

Hinata took off like rocket, focused completely on her attack. Naruto made more Shadow Clones. They spread out and surrounded the three summons, Hinata, Kiba, and Tayuya.

"That bitch is crazy." Tayuya said as she played the note string that called the demon with the large club over to guard her and Kiba.

However, much to Kiba and Tayuya's surprise, Hinata stopped well short of them and just in front of the summon.

"Kaiten!" Hinata yelled and spun in place. There was nothing in the area.

As soon as Hinata's spin had began the sky darkened as dozens of Naruto's jumped into the air and ran around the area.

"Boom." Naruto said with a smile as he made the handsign and sent the mental command to all of his shadow clones. The stadium was rocked to it's core from the force of the explosion. It took a few good minutes for the smoke to clear from the blast so everyone could see the damage. Hinata stood in the middle of the devastation unharmed. There was no trace of the summons and Kiba and Tayuya laid in a heap a few yards away from Hinata.

Kotone inspected the damage. Kiba and Tayuya each had multiple mild injuries. However, considering the pure power of the explosion, they were lucky but in not condition to fight. "Winners of match two Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki!"

The crowd erupted in applause. Partly because the fight had been entertaining, but mostly because everyone loves explosions.

"Match 3, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha versus Chouji Akimichi and Chiyoko Guujin."

The four new competitors made their way to the arena floor while Naruto and Hinata made their way back. Sasuke and Sakura stopped briefly to talk with the victorious pair.

"That was an impressive explosion." Sasuke complimented.

"Yeah, it was pretty cool." Naruto answered with grin.

"Congratulations on your win." Sakura said.

"Thanks." Hinata replied, "Good luck to you two."

"Yeah, you guys got to win, we have to have a match." Naruto said.

"I won't lose until I get to fight you or Gaara." Sasuke replied.

"Then you better get out there." Naruto replied.

"Yeah, see you later." Sasuke said as he departed for the Arena floor.

* * *

Sasuke and Sakura lined up across from Chouji and Chiyoko. Sasuke and Sakura knew that they were in some difficult territory. They knew at least a little bit about every other contestant in the finals, except for Chiyoko. They had never seen her fight, the only thing they knew for sure was that Chiyoko was a med-nin like Sakura.

"Are the contestants ready?" Kotone asked.

"Hmph." Sasuke grunted.

"Yes." Sakura replied.

"You betcha!" Chiyoko said happily while Chouji smiled and nodded.

"Begin!" Kotone said.

"Expansion Jutsu!" Chouji exclaimed as he assumed his typical boulder appearance, "Human Boulder!"

Behind Chouji's rolling form Chiyoko was running through some quick hand signs, "Ninpou: Dokuryoote!" As she finished her jutsu sickly purple fumes emanated from her hands and fingers. She rushed at Sakura.

Sakura grabbed a kunai and prepared for Chiyoko to get close. Chiyoko did not draw a weapon of her own and engaged Sakura in close combat. Sakura quickly realized this was a mistake after she caught a small whiff of the fumes coming off of Chiyoko's hands. However, it gave her some valuable information. The poison Chiyoko was using was a simple concoction designed to knock out the opponent a few minutes after inhalation. It was easily cured with a simple detoxification jutsu, like the one Obito had used back during Team 7's mission to the Land of Waves. Sakura immediately signed her jutsu and began purging her system of the poison.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was dodging Chouji's tank form easily with the aid of his Sharingan. However, even with his powerful dojutsu he could not find a suitable opening to attack. However, he had to try something.

"Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Sasuke shouted as he sent a stream of fireballs at Chouji. However, the portly genin rolled through the flames easily, with out so much as a single burn. He was simply rolling too fast for the flames to catch on him before getting smothered. Sasuke returned to dodging the rolling boulder of flesh while trying to come up with a new plan.

Sakura and Chiyoko were at a standoff. Sakura's close range skills were stronger, if only slightly, than Chiyoko's, but the Suna med-nin was constantly poisoning Sakura. Both were using a good amount of chakra on healing wounds and curing poison.

"Ninpou: Dokubuki!" Chiyoko called out as she whipped out two kunai. Sakura watched as a viscous green liquid emanated from Chiyoko's hands and coated the weapons thoroughly.

_What sort of trick is that?_ Sakura pondered, _Surely she's not storing poison in her body. It has to be some sort of chakra mixture._

Sakura didn't have long to ponder before Chiyoko starting hurling poisoned kunai and shuriken at her. Sakura deflected and dodged the incoming projectiles. Even though her poison skills were interesting, Chiyoko's taijutsu and weapons skills were below average, as far as Sakura could tell. It seemed her poison was her only trick.

Sasuke had to get Chouji out of his rolling tank mode. Otherwise, the Akimichi was just going to steamroll until he got either Sasuke or Sakura. Sasuke made his way over to Sakura as he dodged the boulder. Sakura was currently handling Chiyoko fairly well, but they were at a standstill, with neither able to gain an advantage over the other.

"Sakura!" Sasuke shouted out to his teammate. Sakura took the hint and regrouped with Sasuke, "Sakura, we need to rethink our strategy here. We need to combine our efforts and just knock one of them out of the fight. Chiyoko seems like the weaker link in their team, so we should go after her"

"Okay." Sakura agreed as she and Sasuke dodged Chouji and poisoned weapons thrown by Chiyoko, "What's the plan?"

"Snare her in a genjutsu. Even if she's able to break it, it should snare her long enough for me to take her out and end the match." Sasuke said.

"Alright." Sakura said as she began making the hand signs, "Magen: Jubaku Satsu!"

Chiyoko suddenly found herself frozen, stuck in a tree that obviously could not exist in the desert. Chiyoko undid the genjutsu, but it had it's intended effect.

"Katon: Yari Daikage!" Sasuke announced as the flame staff appeared in his hands. He charged at Chiyoko, who had no time to muster a defense.

"Partial Expansion Jutsu: Arm!" Chouji shouted as he used his giant arms to block for Chiyoko and swat Sasuke away. Chouji suffered a serious wound to his forearm for his troubles. However, his counterattack knocked Sasuke for a loop and both med-nins tended to their respective partners injuries.

"Damn, this is a lot tougher than I thought it would be." Sasuke said as he took stock of the situation. Both he and Chouji were alright, but Sakura and Chiyoko both looked like they were beginning to run low on chakra. One way or another, this fight was probably close to over, and Sasuke had to admit things didn't look good for him and Sakura. Sasuke didn't have a lot of defensive abilities, and Chouji just proved his signature jutsus were useful for both offense and defense.

"Partial Expansion Jutsu: Arm!" Chouji shouted as he enlarged his arms and swiped at his opponents with his arms. This forced Sasuke and Sakura to dodge right into Chiyoko's attack.

"Ninpou: Dokugiri!" Chiyoko announced as she sprayed a heavy purple mist over the area. However, she didn't account for the ability of the Sharingan Eye to read opponent's maneuvers.

"Chidori!" Sasuke shouted as the sounds of a chorus of birds filled arena. He charged straight at Chiyoko. However, Chouji again moved to intercept with his enlarged arms. Sasuke smirked; this was what he was expecting to happen and planned for. Sasuke turned on a dime and ran his Chidori down Chouji's arm. After running along the length of the appendage before plunging the Chidori into Chouji's shoulder. Sasuke made sure not to hit any vital points and not to plunge all the way through Chouji's shoulder, so the damage would be a minimal as possible while still being enough to end the match.

Chouji collapsed to the ground in a heap. Sasuke deactivated his jutsu and his eyes as he recognized the match was over. He was breathing in poison, he knew that before long he would be out cold on the ground with Chouji, but he did enough to win the match.

Kotone checked on the match progress and saw that Chouji was definitely unable to continue, "Winners of match 3, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha!"

"Chouji-kun!" Chiyoko shouted as she ran over to her fallen teammate. She kneeled beside him and immediately began pumping all the chakra she could into healing the damage from Sasuke's Chidori. Before long med-nins rushed the field and began healing Chouji's wound in place of the weak Chiyoko. They also purged Sasuke's system of the poison that was circulating through him. Sakura had already taken care of herself long ago.

* * *

"Match four, Kaen Kanadzuchi and Rock Lee versus Haku Kousetsu and Ino Yamanaka will now begin. Fighters please make your way to the floor." Kotone instructed.

Kaen, Lee, Haku, and Ino appeared on the sandy arena floor a few moments later. The two teams took up their positions on opposite sides of the proctor.

"Are you ready?" Kotone asked the genin.

"Yosh!" Kaen and Lee yelled in unison.

"Hai." Haku said quietly.

"Yeah." Ino answered confidently.

"Begin!" Kotone announced.

Lee and Kaen rocketed into action. Lee launched himself into a taijutsu battle with Ino and Haku while Kaen opted to use her jutsus from range.

"Katon: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Kaen shouted as she launched the balls of fire at the melee. She trusted Lee to dodge the flames. Her trust was well placed as Lee dodged any fireballs that came his way.

"Konoha Reppu!" Lee shouted as he tried to sweep the legs out from under both Ino and Haku. The attack successfully hit Ino, but missed Haku, who jumped clear. Haku did not want to get involved in a close-range battle with Lee. Even though Haku's taijutsu was well above average for a genin, it was nowhere near as good as Lee's. However, he knew Ino's taijutsu was even worse. Though they had worked hard over the last month, Ino was still below average in most ninja skills. He would never tell her, but the only thing she ever seemed to excel at was her familial jutsu. He was going to have to time his jutsus well to even have a shot at winning this fight. He pulled out a senbon and engaged whole-heartedly into combat with Lee.

Lee had his hands full with Haku. The ice-user showed more aggression and power in his strikes than Lee had ever seen before. The fact that Haku pulled out a senbon tipped Lee off to the fact that he was trying to get into a situation to make full advantage of his ability to make one-handed seals. Lee, however, was having none of it. Whenever Haku would try to lock up with him, Lee would make sure that he couldn't take advantage with kicks and punches to his signing hand.

Ino felt useless, and she was. Her taijutsu wasn't even close to Haku's let alone Lee's. She didn't know many jutsu outside of the basic stuff taught at the academy and her familial jutsu. She had never felt so useless. However, she didn't have time to wallow in self pity as Kaen turned her attention to Ino.

"Katon: Dragon Flame Bombs!" Kaen announced as she shot a stream of fireballs at Ino. Ino barely managed to dodge the fireballs enough to avoid any major burns.

Haku noticed what was going on, and pulled out a scroll. A scroll that Lee instantly recognized from the second exam. Haku opened up the scroll and poured his chakra into it. Instantly, a large gush of water exited the scroll and covered the dry sandy ground. All of the water was quickly drunk up by the ground. However, that was fine with Haku, the water was still there.

Lee realized how dangerous this situation could be if Haku used his signature jutsu. Lee was proven right when Haku went on the defensive and formed the handsigns for his technique. However, the sequence was different than Lee ever remembered seeing.

"Secret Jutsu: Crystal Ice Menagerie!" Haku shouted as a much larger dome than Lee had ever seen before. Not only that, but the whole thing was rotating. Lee realized he had to stop Haku from entering the mirrors or he and Kaen would probably end up losing the fight. However, he wasn't quite fast enough as Haku melted into one of the mirrors.

Lee knew Haku was incredibly fast when using the base version of this jutsu, but he wondered if this new and improved version boosted his speed even further. Lee unbuckled his weights and dropped them, he was going to need every bit of speed he could get now.

Kaen was also caught in the impressive jutsu. _Well, fire melts ice..._ Kaen thought as she ran through her own set of hand seals, "Katon: Gibusu Enkoo!" Kaen felt the warmth of her fire jutsu overtake her. She loved this jutsu. It always felt like she became fire incarnate. After the flames completely wreathed her body, she moved to the mirrors in an attempt to melt them down. She approached the mirrors, but surprisingly they didn't even show the slightest signs of melting as her flames. She decided she was going to have to try something more powerful. _This is going to hurt..._

Lee could barely keep up. Even with his increase in speed after dropping his weights, Lee was losing the battle. However suddenly, Haku's attacks on Lee decreased. Lee looked around to see Kaen in her fire jutsu, trying to burn down the mirrors around her. He realized that Haku was focusing on trying to take her out before she was able to melt his technique.

"Eight Inner Gates: Gate of Opening, open!" Lee shouted as he opened the first chakra gate. He then took off in a flash after Haku.

Haku was surprised when his intended attack against the flame wielding kunoichi was stopped by Lee. _The Eight Inner Gates... very impressive_. Haku thought. Haku had heard stories, but had never seen wither Guy or Lee using the power of the unlocked gates. This new Lee was just as fast as he was using his mirrors. _This could be trouble..._

Kaen made her mind and made the single handsign. She was going to take some serious damage from this, but she was sure the jutsu should have enough kick to break down the mirrors. "Katon: Gibusu Enkoo Nova!" The flames around her condensed around her chest above her heart. Then, as soon as all the fire had became a single white-hot dot in front of her, the condensed flames exploded in an incredible flash of white light. Everyone was sent packing and half of Haku's dome was demolished.

Haku was smashed against a wall along with Lee as the blast rocketed through the arena. Ino rolled along the ground. Since she was farthest away from the explosion when it happened, she was the least damaged by it. Ino quickly scrambled back up to her feet and took stock of her situation. She realized she had a golden opportunity before her. Lee was reeling from the blast and having to deal with the aftereffects of opening the first gate.

"Mind Transfer Jutsu!" Ino intoned as she made the sign for her family's patented jutsu. Luckily, Lee did not move. Ino's body went limp as she took over Lee's. Ino moved Lee's body to look around for Kaen. Ino spotted Kaen struggling to regain her feet in the middle of the arena. Ino rushed Lee to her side.

"Kaen, are you okay?" Ino asked through Lee's body.

"More or less." Kaen answered.

"Good." Ino replied as she raised Lee's hand. She swiftly brought the hand down on the back of Kaen's head. Kaen slumped to the ground, unconscious. Ino smiled then placed her hands in the release sign, "Release!"

Ino's mind migrated back to her own body, which was being protected over by Haku. Kotone checked on Kaen and deemed that the fight was over, "Winners of match four, Haku Kousetsu and Ino Yamanaka." There was a chorus of boos at the announcement, most of the people in the audience had felt that the method Ino had used to win the match was underhanded and dirty.

"Way to go, Ino-chan." Haku congratulated his girlfriend.

"Thanks, Haku-kun." Ino replied with a smile, "I'm just glad I could do something. I didn't realize how useless I was. I'm going to have to train harder."

Haku smiled back and nodded as they made their way back to the waiting room."

* * *

"Now for the final match of the opening round, Sai and Tsuneni Tadashii versus Gaara of the Desert and Shiroi Wangetsu." Kotone announced, "Combatants to the floor please."

The four contestants silently made their way to the floor. Kotone looked at each team. Honestly, she felt a little sad for the team that was facing Gaara. The arena was covered in sand. Gaara would be undefeatable here.

"Are the combatants ready?" Kotone asked.

Everyone silently nodded in response.

"Begin!" Kotone signaled the start of the match.

Shiroi immediately pulled out a katana and charged at Sai and Tsuneni. Tsuneni wasted no time in coming at Shiroi. She was interested in seeing if she had grown stronger than him over the course of the past six months. Sai backed away from the melee and brought out a scroll and an ink brush. Gaara just casually watched on, waiting for the time to strike.

"Chouju Giga!" Sai said as he sent out a wave of ink animals to attack.

Gaara looked on impassively as Shiroi dodged and evaded the attacks of the ink beasts and Tsuneni. He sighed, there didn't seem to be anything here that would be able to touch him. He decided it was time to end it.

"Sand Tsunami!" Gaara said as he slammed his palms to the sand. Suddenly, the sand roiled underneath the arena and a large wave emerged to crush Sai. Gaara couldn't catch Tsuneni with the attack because of her proximity to Shiroi, but he didn't need to. He only had to neutralize one of them.

Sai was taken aback by the large wave of sand coming at him. There was no way to escape it. He placed his arms in front of himself and braced for impact. The sand wave crashed into him and drove him back into the wall of the arena. There Sai remained buried.

Gaara looked at Kotone, "He'll lose consciousness in roughly 5 minutes, or I could kill him from this position. Either way, he's out of the match."

Kotone looked over at the pile of sand and nodded. She didn't see any evidence of Sai making it out of the sand. "Winners of match five, Gaara of the Desert and Shiroi Wangetsu."

The crowd cheered for Gaara, the only Suna nin to make it past the first round.

"Now since we have an uneven amount of teams for the next round, one random team will be getting a bye, a free pass into the semifinals." Kotone said as she held up a small bag, she took small wooden plates with the names of each team on it and tossed them into the bag. After giving it a good shake she reached in and extracted a plate. "The random bye goes to Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki." Kotone then pulled out two more plates, "Match 1 of round two will be Gaara of the Desert and Shiroi Wangetsu versus Haku Kousetsu and Ino Yamanaka. Match two will thusly be Neji Hyuga and Tenten Saseru versus Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno. We will have a three hour intermission while the fighters recuperate and rebuild their chakra reserves." Kotone looked at her watch to see that it was a little after 10 AM, "The battles will continue at shortly after one."

After that was said, people began filing out of the arena. There was a much talking amongst the spectators about the first round fights, and predictions about the next round. Everyone believe Gaara and Shiroi would win their fight easily. There was a split amongst who would win the Neji and Tenten versus Sasuke and Sakura fight, the main concern being how recuperated would Tenten be before the fight began.

* * *

"Man, this sucks." Naruto complained as he, Hinata, Sakura, and Sasuke went together to get something to eat before the next round started.

"What are you complaining about, idiot? You got a free pass to the next round." Sasuke replied.

"Yeah, but I wanted to fight my way through it." Naruto said, "This kinda feels like I'm cheating."

"There's nothing we can do about it now, Naruto-kun." Hinata tried to calm Naruto down. Truthfully, she was glad to have the bye, it meant more time to rest. That, and she didn't like fighting all that much anyway.

"Yeah you guys are lucky." Sakura said, "We gotta fight that Neji."

"Any tips for us?" Sasuke asked.

"Just try to play keep away." Naruto said, "Neji is all about close range. Most genjutsu won't work on him because of the Byakugan. Engaging in close combat with Neji is asking for defeat."

"Okay." Sasuke replied, "Tenten's weakened. I think we should probably focus on trying to take her out."

"Yeah." Sakura agreed, "She'll be the weaker link."

The four of them walked along to the restaurant they had ate at when they first came to Suna. They thoroughly enjoyed their lunch before heading back to the arena.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata split away from Sasuke and Sakura at the main gates of the arena. There were only two rounds scheduled for the day, with the final two rounds scheduled for tomorrow. Therefore, Naruto and Hinata had decided to watch the next round from the stands.

Walking around to find a couple of seats, Naruto and Hinata bumped into Obito and Rin.

"Congratulations on making the semifinals you two." Rin said as the two couples got close.

"Yeah, that was a good match." Obito said, "Good use of distraction. Even though you didn't have to go quite so far with the exploding clones."

Naruto laughed, "I just wanted to make sure they got the job done."

"Anyway, I guess you two have come up here to watch the next two matches?" Rin asked.

"Hai, Rin-san." Hinata answered.

Rin giggled slightly at Hinata, "Just Rin is fine, Hinata. Come there was a couple of empty seats near me and Obito, and not a lot of people have showed back up yet. We should be able to get some really good seats."

Hinata nodded as she and Naruto followed Obito and Rin down to front-row seats. Rin had been right, the arena was all but abandoned. The four of them sat down and awaited the start of the next round.

About thirty minutes later, people started to pour back into the stadium, awaiting the start of the next round eagerly. Fifteen minutes after that, Kotone reappeared in the middle of the arena.

"Thank you all for your patience." Kotone addressed the audience, "Without further ado, the second round will begin with Gaara of the Desert and Shiroi Wangetsu versus Haku Kousetsu and Ino Yamanaka."

* * *

A/N:

I know this is slightly shorter than most of the other chapters, but I didn't want to force anything so, eh.

I'm pleased in how many of you enjoyed the fight with the worm. I'm going to have to try to find a way to capture that sort of action in all of my fights. I hope these matches get close to that.

Also, to answer a question, Temari and Kankuro have a different familial name from Gaara because I used Gaara's English name without really thinking much of it, until it came time for Temari and Kankuro to have last names (I like to give all characters last names, the only exception to this will be Sai, or any other Root Ninja).

I hope you enjoyed chapter 19. Please read and review.


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